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UPDATED 4/6/11 6:40 p.m.

Five of Gov. Neil Abercrombie‘s nine nominees to the new appointed Hawaii State Board of Education cruised through their first Senate Education Committee hearing Wednesday.

After three hours of conversation that ranged from charter school ethics to the Department of Education‘s antiquated human resources systems, the committee voted unanimously to recommend appointees , , , and for confirmation.

“I think the general consensus is that we want to just give them a chance,” said committee chairwoman Jill Tokuda after the recommendation was made in a single sweeping motion. The other four nominees — Nancy Budd, Charlene Cuaresma, Cheryl Kauhane Lupenui and Keith Amemiya — will have their time in the hot seat on Friday. Tokuda hopes to send the recommendations to the full Senate for a floor vote on April 14.

But if Wednesday’s hearings are any indication, those four can relax. Although the committee dug deep into some tough topics, it felt like a room full of Senators and nominees talking story about education issues with candor, rather than either side trying to prove something to the other. Instead of tense moments, there were lighthearted ones. It seemed from the discussion that all participants are passionate about Hawaii’s students, schools and communities.

Each of the nominees answered a questionnaire for the committee in advance of the hearing, which covered the basics of why they applied and what their goals on the board are. Their answers are published online, along with public testimony.

Big themes that emerged included increasing efficiency in the department, improving charter school ethics and greater accountability. The accountability issue was expected, as the appointed board was largely formed to replace the elected board in the wake of statewide frustration over Furlough Fridays.

Culture Change: Out With The Old, In With Efficiency

Horner, who has been tapped to be the board’s first chairman, was the last to take the seat. And in a room full of sincerity, the First Hawaiian Bank CEO was one of the most forthright. While student achievement is his first priority, he said, he plans to get there by way of a more efficient Board of Education and Department of Education.

“I get really strategic,” he said. “I’m a person that’s more tactical.”

He told the committee he hopes to begin by throwing out the board’s old bylaws and policies and starting from scratch. That, he said, would send a message to the entire system that its culture is about to change.

Horner’s vision for a permanent audit committee on the board also came into clearer focus under questioning, and he talked about increasing efficiency by updating technology systems and reorganizing to put the right personnel in the right places.

“Honestly, the human resources system is so antiquated that those people are working very very hard and not necessarily smart,” he said. “We have a lot to do in HR. In my opinion, the state hasn’t necessarily been a good employer in the way it treats employees. And it doesn’t have to be that way.”

He also spoke about not duplicating work and suggested he would like to consolidate the separate Board of Education and Department of Education communications offices into one.

Sen. Sam Slom submitted a “very strong aye” in favor of the nominees after asking them some tough questions and even receiving some gentle chiding from the chairman-to-be.

“In all candor, Senator, we probably have more statutes from the Legislature than we need,” Horner said when asked if he anticipated a need for any new state laws to support the board’s goals. “Our goal is to do our job and not rely on statutes to do it for us. We may even come back and tell you there are some statutes we don’t need anymore.”

Slom said all five nominees are “grounded and focused,” and he has no doubt they will bring about significant changes to the school system.

“We’ll be watching them, as will the state,” he said, in a playfully ominous voice.