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Birth
Barack Hussein Obama was born in Hawaii. His mother was from Kansas and his father was from Kenya. His grandparents also helped to raise him. -
Columbia University
Obama graduated from Columbia University in New York in 1983. His degreee is in political science. -
Harvard University
In 1991, Obama graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School. While at Harvard, he became the first African American editor of the Harvard Law Review. -
Barack and Michelle Married
They met in Chicago at the law firm of Sidley Austin. Michelle was assigned to be his advisor while he had an internship there and they started dating soon after. Not too long after they were married, they moved to Kenwood, Illinois. -
Published an Autobiography
This book received high praise from multiple literary figures. It has been printed in 10 different languages and has been adapted into a children's book. Obama also narrated an audiobook version and has won a Grammy Award for it. -
Illinois State Senate
Obama ran and won elction to the state senate in 1996 as a Democrat. While in the senate, he worked to expand healthcare and early childhood education services for the poor. "He also created a state earned income tax credit for the working poor." -
Sworn into Senate
Obama became a U.S. Senator for the state of Illinois. He "spoke out for victims of Hurricane Katrina, pushed for alternative energy development, and championed improved veterans' benefits." Obama also helped to create a website that tracked all federal spending. -
Published a Second Book
Obama's second book is titled, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. In it he discusses quite a few topics that he would eventually use in his platform when running for president. The book made it onto the New York Times bestseller list at No. 1. It also made it onto the Amazon.com bestseller list. -
Sworn in as 44th President of the United States
On this day, Obama became the first African American president of the United States. He won the presidency over John McCain by 52.9%. His vice president was Joe Biden, a senator from Delaware. His presidential campaign was rooted in grassroots causes. -
Awarded 2009 Nobel Peace Prize
Obama was awarded this prize by the Nobel Committee in Norway for his efforts of preparing America for the swine flu, fighting pirates off of the coast of Somalia, and set a date for withdrawing troops from Iraq. He also worked on improving relations with multiple foreign countries. -
Start of Second Term
After being reelcted in November of 2012, Obama officially began his second term as president on January 21st. He was sworn in on Martin Luther KIng Jr. Day. Many prominent African Americans spoke and sang at the inauguration.
