Around noon on Friday, Jan. 20, those with CNN’s mobile app received a notification — “Obamas leave White House for last time to become a private family.” As the Obamas return to domesticity, American’s must take the time to look back at the accomplishments of Barack Obama and the legacy he has left behind as the 44th President of the United States of America.

For the first time since Calvin Coolidge in 1928, a sitting U.S. president visited Cuba. On May 22, 2016, President Obama visited to discuss relaxing the relationship between the United States and Cuba with Cuban president Raul Castro. In October, Obama signed an executive order that diminished the restrictions on trade and travel between the two countries. Obama’s executive actions are a huge leap in restoring the relationship between Cuba and the United States.

Much like rebellions, Barack Obama’s 2008 and 2012 campaigns were built on a promise of hope. President Obama promised not only to fix America’s problems, but to make things better. He promised change and aimed for innovation, improvement, and advancement, domestically, and internationally. At the end of his last term, America’s unemployment rate was down to 4.7%, in stark contrast to the 10% peak in October of the first year of his presidency. President Obama’s eight-year tenure was also a massive step forward for social justice, beginning with the repeal of the Army and Navy “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policies in 2010. Obama’s quest for social progress culminated to the legalization of gay marriage in June of 2015, after the Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the prohibition of same-sex marriage was unconstitutional. The former president’s attempts at change don’t stop there.

The Affordable Care Act remains one of President Obama’s most controversial endeavors, especially as America transitions into the Trump presidency. Under ACA, health insurance became available to Americans with pre-existing health conditions, whereas before they were seen as too much of a financial risk for insurance companies. The ACA made it illegal for an insurance company to deny or refuse coverage to a citizen with a pre-existing condition. It is worth noting that there was not any criteria for what a “pre-existing condition” was. The mostly-harmless skin disease psoriasis is held in equal regard to other diseases and conditions like asthma, diabetes, and cancer. Often these conditions are something a person was born with. This left many Americans, 1 in 4 according to USNews.com, to suffer as a result of something neither they nor their families could control or prevent.

The ACA also allows young adults to remain a dependent under their parents’ insurance until the age of 26, allowing them to focus their early years on finishing college and establishing themselves instead of trying to scrounge up enough money to pay for insurance premiums. While the economic feasibility of the ACA has been and will continue to be a highly contested subject, it remains a fact that Obama’s actions have made healthcare more available and accessible than ever before.

It remains impossible to bring up President Obama’s key attempt at improving American health care without discussing what Michelle Obama has done for the children of America. Similar to ACA, Michelle Obama’s healthcare initiatives to prevent child obesity have been heavily criticized. However, Mrs. Obama is chiefly responsible for starting the conversation of child obesity in America and bringing it to the forefront. She led the cause to reform school lunches and aided in encouraging and developing programs that led to young Americans eating healthier, exercising, and really considering what they put in their body.

President Obama has also been key in improving America’s global image, after the wars and military scandals of the Bush administration. The Obama’s brought an air of class and leisure to the White House that translated well globally. Barack Obama’s genial and humorous demeanor and Michelle Obama’s down-to-earth manner and stellar sense of style hit chords with people across the world, both young and old.

It was under his command that the Navy Seal Team 6 stormed the compound of Osama Bin Laden. Obama signed executive orders that reversed the torture policies established by the Bush administration. He finally put an end to the exhaustive Iraq War and also began the drawdown of the war in Afghanistan.

Barack Obama exits the office with the third highest approval rating of any exiting president. According to CNN, 65% of Americans agree that Obama’s presidency was one of immense progress and improvement, and 25% say that Obama is one of the nation’s greatest presidents. It appears safe to say that Obama’s tenure will go down as a bright spot in American history — an era of social progress and advancement for America, both in the eyes of its citizens and those abroad.