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A thousand or more New York City charter school parents are expected to gather in Times Square tonight to urge Barack Obama to send his daughters to charter schools. At the event, they will sign letters to the Obamas making that case. More than 10,000 parents have already signed, according to the groups organizing the event, Democrats for Education Reform and the Black Alliance for Educational Options.

Schools Chancellor Joel Klein is also expected in Times Square, as is BAEO founder Howard Fuller.

The parents have a local message, too: they want the city to open 32 new charter schools by 2010.

First family-elect. (Via Flickr.)

Last night on “60 Minutes,” during her first interview as First Lady-elect, Michelle Obama was asked how she will decide where to send her daughters to school. “We want that to be a personal process,” she said.

Democrats for Education Reform, the lobbying group I profiled last week, is looking at the Obamas’ choice through a political lens. DFER wants the president-elect and his wife to consider sending their daughters to charter schools — and, barring that, to support charter schools, a top DFER issue.

The group is also asking charter school parents to plead with the Obamas, by mailing in a form letter: (more…)

From the Associated Press’s big scoop, revealing that Michelle Obama visited two Washington, D.C., private schools yesterday, is a nugget that is much more exciting to me:

Reporters and TV crews had camped out at Georgetown Day, Sidwell Friends and the Maret School.

Reporters and TV crews camping out in front of schools — that’s giving education the priority treatment it deserves.

PS: Washington City Paper’s City Desk blog has the best coverage of Sasha and Malia Watch.