It would seem that voters have two legitimate choices when deciding whether to support the Dallas school district's $1.35 billion bond election May 10. And technically, that's true.

They could vote against the package and deprive a struggling but improving district of the new buildings and renovations essential to ease overcrowding, fix safety problems and stop the old ones from flooding during storms. Unquestionably, teacher and student morale – not to mention learning – would suffer further if these decrepit conditions persisted.

Or, they could evaluate all of the evidence, look past some concerns and approve the package. That would mean accepting an ongoing audit that will show, at the least, accounting and management problems that must be fixed.

While not exactly a Hobson's choice – "Your money or your life!" – it's a tough call for DISD voters. It's especially difficult when the district's integrity is foremost on voters' minds, fueled by a drumbeat of negative headlines.

The easy choice for all of us would be to throw up our hands and walk away from a school district that can't seem to get everything right. But that would be an old-think, shortsighted mistake that would doom our city and, by extension, this region to a sad and sorry future.

This newspaper, despite some misgivings, stands by its recommendation that voters approve the bond package. All things considered, DISD cannot afford to have this crucial bond rejected at the polls.

Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said that a comprehensive audit, begun in September, would be completed by now and would show no evidence of ongoing fraud or malfeasance. But the independent auditor has encountered so many accounting problems that it can't issue its report until well after the May vote.

We asked for some type of interim assessment, but the audit firm's rules do not allow such a report, which speaks to its independence but leaves voters empty-handed.

To his credit, Dr. Hinojosa has been upfront for months that this audit would uncover major accounting problems – which he has pledged to fix. He also contends that the cleanest and best-managed parts of DISD's budget are the areas covered by the bond package – construction, food services, land acquisition and technology upgrades.

Like you, we'd love to have our hands on that auditor's report. Like you, we will demand implementation of the auditor's findings and expect Dr. Hinojosa and his command staff to fix things – or else.

On balance, we believe Dr. Hinojosa is the right superintendent at the right time, and he needs this bond package to ensure that our children receive high-quality education in spacious, dry and structurally sound classrooms equipped with modern technology.

As we noted last fall, after another negative headline, there will be bumps along the "Road to Broad," Dr. Hinojosa's ambitious vision to build the nation's best urban school district, as determined by the Broad Foundation for Education.

Stay focused, we urged, on the big picture.

We've hit another bump. The big picture hasn't changed.DISD's proposed $1.35 billion bond program includes:

for renovating existing schools

for new and replacement schools

for technology upgrades

for campus additions

for science labs

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