The Waco Independent School District board’s hesitation to implement an International Baccalaureate program at several more campuses beyond Mountainview Elementary School is entirely justified given sudden program cost increases and requirements revealed mere weeks before the start of school.

The board paused Thursday to reconsider, and it could vote as early as this week to hold back on the rigorous curriculum this academic year. This comes after a candid report from Michael Watkins, new WISD director of advanced academics.

He estimates that program costs could hit $700,425 this academic year, a whopping increase of 348 percent over the original estimate of $156,200, presented to the board in April 2009. Costs could top $976,200 by the 2012-2013 academic year.

Several other unresolved issues also loom, such as the hiring of additional Spanish-language teachers, training an IB coordinator for Waco High and informing counselors about course requirements. Hundreds of student schedules would need to be changed, and school starts Aug. 23. Textbooks also still need to be bought.

Many questions need answering, but we’re glad this has been brought to light.

Board member Pat Atkins called Watkins’ presentation “refreshing.” We’d add it was also bold, considering that when he submitted the meeting material, WISD Superintendent Roland Hernandez had yet to announce he was leaving to take another job in Corpus Christi. Watkins could have been presenting this jarring report before his boss Thursday. (Hernandez, as it turned out, was absent from last Thursday’s meeting.)

If the program starts prematurely without staff and parents up to speed, students could ultimately face academic disappointments. This challenging curriculum could prepare students for college, but it must be done right with full administrative and family support. For now it’s wise to just keep it at the pilot school, Mountainview Elementary, unless school board members are fully satisfied of cost and preparation factors ensuring its success elsewhere.

“This report might not have been what we wanted to hear, but it was what we needed to hear to make accurate decisions,” Atkins said. We agree and await their decision.