Oklahoma is OK. For years, this motto heralded our satisfactory status on our license plates.

Oklahoma wasn’t “great” or even “good.” It was okay. This may not seem like a big deal, but it is a pervasive mindset. Oklahoma is OK. It’s okay; not too good, not too bad, just okay.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “okay” as “satisfactory” or “adequate.” If something is okay, it’s not exceptional or extraordinary.

That is the state of so many things in our society that people seem to like to complain about around the water cooler — from roads to education to politics. We, as a society, seem to regularly embrace the status quo. We accept that things are “okay” as they are instead of insisting that they be better.

We may complain, but do we take any action to correct the situation?

And if things are just okay, are we growing as a society or are we, in fact, regressing? This is not about assigning blame. It’s taken us decades to reach the point where we are, and it will take the same amount of time or longer to get out of the hole that we’ve dug for ourselves.

Take, for example, House Bill 2258, currently making the rounds of our state Legislature. This bill, as written, would allow students to substitute “agricultural power and technology, agricultural communications or agricultural horticulture” for the current fine arts requirement for high school graduation, the only arts instruction requirement that we have for Oklahoma students.

The proposal passed the House 93-2 and is pending in the Senate. If this bill passes, many rural school districts, struggling to find and retain quality art and music teachers, will have no incentive to provide art or music classes, which we know directly improve student success.

Students who receive fine arts and music instruction in school perform better on ACT and SAT tests, are more likely to graduate high school and continue on to college or career tech and have better classroom engagement and participation in all their classes.

Every day we hear the cry for a better educated workforce if we are to attract and retain good jobs in our state. An educated workforce means a well-rounded workforce — one that can adapt to current and future workforce needs.

Agriculture is extremely important to our state, as is aerospace. The top engineers at Boeing have fine arts backgrounds. Engineers in many fields, including agriculture, have participated in STEAM education in high school — bringing together engineering with science, technology, arts and math.

This left- and right-brain approach to learning creates students who can solve problems from a variety of angles, making them better prepared for real-world applications.

And it’s okay with me if we acknowledge agriculture power and technology, communication and horticulture as recognized credits for graduation. But these should not be in place of but in addition to fine arts and every other subject that is required for graduation.

Why should art and music be allowed to be substituted and not sports or history? Which subjects have more value?

The issue really goes back to a willingness in our state to be “okay” instead of striving for something better. We need to address the root causes of the challenges many rural communities face in finding and retaining qualified faculty, no matter the subject.

We need to invest in education so that every student receives a well-rounded, quality education that prepares them for a future full of possibilities. We shouldn’t be limiting our students’ future by limiting their opportunities in school.