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All that’s left is a signature before Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie can begin appointing his Board of Education.

The Senate voted 23-0 in favor of Thursday afternoon, giving Abercrombie and future governors the sole authority to appoint members of the Board of Education. It goes next to Abercrombie’s desk, where he is expected to sign it into law on Monday, March 14.

Press secretary Donalyn Dela Cruz told us the governor is finalizing plans for a ceremony to accompany the historic bill signing. Once it is signed, he must submit his nominees by April 1, if he wants them to be confirmed this legislative session.  

Hawaii has had an elected Board of Education for the last 45 years, but voters passed an amendment in November to replace the elected board with one appointed by the governor.

“As all of you are aware, the people spoke and we have listened,” said bill sponsor and Senate Education Chairwoman Jill Tokuda before the final vote Thursday. “We have worked hard at balancing the need to expedite the passage of this bill with the responsibility to get it right.”

The new Board of Education structure will be “vastly different” from the current one, she said, and will give Hawaii’s voters the kind of accountability they asked for, while establishing certain minimum requirements for service on the board. The Legislature debated whether to have an appointment process similar to the one used for University of Hawaii regents, who are vetted by a selection council, which provides the governor with a list of candidates.

The new appointed board will have nine voting members — down from 13 on the current board — and will keep the nonvoting student and military representatives. (A calls for giving the student member voting rights.) The governor will also now select the board’s chairperson from among three at-large members, instead of allowing the board members to elect their own chairperson.

The governor’s nominees will be subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. The final draft of the bill requires them to have experience working with complex organizations, demonstrated team leadership skills, a record of interest in education and an understanding of collective bargaining. Dela Cruz said that several people have already filed applications for seats on the new board, but that Abercrombie wants more applicants for it and the other 600 board and commission seats he has to fill.

Although he plans to rely heavily on the applicants for his nominations, Dela Cruz said Abercrombie may seek out other qualified candidates along the lines of First Hawaiian Bank Chairman and CEO Don Horner, who was recently appointed to fill a Board of Education vacancy. Horner will be the first appointee to the new board.

“The governor sought out Don to set an example and show that this is very serious for him,” she said. “Don has significant business experience, but he had also worked with the board in the past and been very involved with education in the community.”