Barack Obama isn’t the only one transitioning into a new gig.

This blog is going through a transition of its own. About the time Barack Obama gets sworn in, this blog will be re-named Politics K-12 to reflect its new mission. Our musings, analysis, breaking news, sass and spunk won’t be reserved just for the campaigns anymore. The politics of public schools—whether at the local, state or federal level—will become the expanded theme of the blog. And expect the country’s dire financial straits to be a focal point for the new Politics K-12, which will closely monitor the states’ and the federal budgets. After all, money makes schools go ‘round.

Launched in September 2007, this blog was thought to be a temporary gig—a venue to talk about the 2007 and 2008 election season, and mostly, the presidential race. On this blog, we took you to the campaign trail in Indiana and South Carolina, to the convention floors of Denver and St. Paul, and inside the political rhetoric of the many debates. Along the way, we beat everyone to the news that Arne Duncan was the ed sec pick (edging out the New York Times by a single minute), irritated ED in ’08 so much at one point that the group canceled an interview with me, went toe-to-toe with Flypaper over portfolios, and asked this prophetic question way back in January 2007: John McCain on Education: Where Art Thou?

Our traffic, comments, and feedback from you—the reader—have been fantastic, and so we’re gonna keep on blogging. The blog is staying right here, so the url will stay the same and your bookmarks and email subscriptions will still work. If you have any ideas on what we should be blogging about in the weeks and months ahead, please feel free to leave a comment or email us using the links under our pictures.

So as Obama navigates his first term in office, as the country muddles through a nasty recession, and as schools weather the fallout from the fiscal storm, stay tuned to Politics K-12 for the latest.