Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie held a private meeting with his new appointed Board of Education before their first official meeting on Tuesday.

On Monday, Abercrombie’s office announced that he would make a public appearance with the board Tuesday. Minutes later the announcement was retracted and the appearance removed from his public schedule.

At 9:45 Tuesday, the scheduled starting time for the board’s public meeting and orientation, a knot of reporters and constituents waited outside the cordoned-off board room in the Queen Liliuokalani Building. The governor had just made his exit from what appeared to be a private gathering of him and his board members. At 9:47, members of the public were allowed into the board room where eight of the nine appointees were gathered.

At 9:52, the public meeting convened. “We’re running seven minutes behind, and that’s not my style,” announced Chairman Don Horner.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Education said she thought the session with the governor was a “thank you” for the new members’ service.