Michelle Obama Has a New Mission for Schools, and it Doesn’t Involve Exercise

Josh Duboff

Michelle Obama is Let's Move-ing on to a new focus (sorry), as the First Lady will be embarking on a new initiative today centered on driving the number of low-income students enrolling in college. After some five years primarily spent "evangelizing exercise," as the Times puts it, this represents new territory for Michelle.

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Beginning today with a speech at a Washington high school, the effort will take her to schools across the country-and will also, naturally, utilize social media-to stress the importance of higher education. She's reportedly going to be using her own personal narrative to make her point, as the Times says she will be telling those assembled today in her remarks, "I'm here today because I want you to know that my story can be your story . . . The details might be a little different, but so many of the challenges and triumphs will be just the same."

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While there are some who have been impatiently waiting for Michelle to use her "historic position to move more deeply into policy," a University of California, Riverside history professor and first lady expert quoted in the Times said she believes the wait was necessary, assessing, "She just could not have done this four years ago . . . If she came out of the gate with something much more tied to policy, she would have been shot down. Just look at the reaction to her suggestions that people eat salad."

No doubt this "salad" shout out is a harbinger of the slew of health-referencing headlines to come the next few weeks in coverage of Michelle's new focus. ("Eat All The Cake You Want! Michelle Isn't Paying Attention Anymore!" or "You Can Stop Doing Group Dances Now, Seriously.").

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