Hoey came to the school in 1928 as an English instructor before becoming assistant headmaster to the Reverend W. Brooke Stabler in 1944, and taking over as headmaster in July of 1950.

Born Aug. 21, 1904, in Bradford, Pennsylvania, Hoey received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1924 and his Master of Arts degree in 1927 from the University of Michigan. He taught for one year at the University of Minnesota before coming to Cranbrook. One of his more notable accomplishments as an English teacher at Cranbrook was writing the script for the annual Christmas Pageant.

Hoey was active in community affairs, serving on the Vestry of Christ Church Cranbrook and on many Community Chest Committees. He was also a member of the Executive Committee of the Oakland County Chapter of the American Red Cross, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Children's Hospital of Michigan, and a Director of the Detroit Group Project.

After retirement, Hoey became headmaster of The American School in Managua, Nicaragua. Four years after leaving Cranbrook, a hallway in the upper school was dedicated in his name.