ABC News-President Obama waves to citizens of Denver after a campaign speech for his second term

With only 44 days left in office, President Obama’s legacy will live on, from his monumental decision to legalize gay marriage to the affordable healthcare act that allows students to stay on their parent’s insurance until the age of 26.

President Obama will leave historic significance to the presidency in making history for being the first African American president. The African American community came out in large numbers to elect President Obama in 2008, being the first time that over 90 percent of the African American community had voted in a presidential election.

Under President Obama’s leadership, the LGBT community was granted equal rights with gay marriage being declared legal by the Supreme Court in June 2015. In an ABC interview last year the President said, “Same-sex couples should be able to get married and the Supreme Court ruling grants equal rights for all.”

The Affordable Care Act was a monumental step in history in generating healthcare for all Americans. The act states that insurance companies cannot deny anyone regardless of their health status the right to universal health insurance. The act also gives college students more time to stay on their parent’s insurance. Under the act, students can now stay on their parents insurance until age 26.

The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 finalized the Affordable Care Act and was significant in promoting higher education. The act raises the maximum Pell Grant, makes loan payments more affordable for students with unmanageable debt, and increases investments in community colleges, Historically Black Colleges, Hispanic Serving Institutions and other Minority Serving Institutions.

The second lady of the US, Dr. Jill Biden said, “The president has set an ambitious goal for higher education in this country. By 2020, we want America once again to have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world,” in a 2010 interview with the Huffington Post.

Many Americans will remember the president for his strides in promoting excellence for the African American community. According to Black Enterprise, JumpStart Our Business Start-up (JOBS) Act resulted in a major shift in securities laws that meant the emancipation of capital for minority and women-owned businesses, who traditionally have struggled with gaining access to capital through traditional means. More minorities and lower net worth individuals were able to get in on investments that can drive more wealth generation to their communities.

In February 2014, the president introduced My Brother’s Keeper, to specifically focus on improving the lives of young African American males. The initiative is encouraging nonprofits to raise $200 million in five years for programs focused on young men of color. Though My Brother’s Keeper is not a federally-funded government program, no such effort has existed before under any American president.

Sarah Thomas, a sophomore kinesiology major from Detroit said, “President Obama will be missed greatly. The African American community progressed as a whole with him being the first African American president.” Thomas went into great detail about equal rights for all and said, “The legalization of gay marriage was monumental in promoting equal rights.”

President Obama’s legacy will go down in history for making groundbreaking executive decisions for equal rights and opportunity.