Learning the right habits early is crucial. That’s why Operation Click’s expanding efforts to keep area students safe while driving are commendable.

The nonprofit’s cornerstone remains teaching young drivers to wear seat belts. But the effort has expanded to address other driving distractions, such as texting while driving, in 49 high schools in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin.

The group’s data show that schools within the program have consistently improved, percentage-wise, in seat-belt use. At District 155’s four high schools – Crystal Lake Central, Crystal Lake South, Prairie Ridge and Cary-Grove – that improvement has been from 65 percent to 95 percent compliance since the program began in 1998. A program that can effectively and responsibly make the population safer, funded by donations, is a good thing.