Rhode Island College student graduates after years of homelessness

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WJAR) — Rhode Island College held its commencement ceremonies Saturday in Providence, and for one graduate, it was extra special.

Francisca Garcia was one of the more than 1,300 RIC graduates in the class of 2023.

"I cannot believe that I made it," said Garcia.

Garcia moved to the U.S. from Ecuador in 1999, and the 48-year-old mother of two experienced years of homelessness in New York and Rhode Island.

"Sometimes we didn't have no food to eat," she said. "We had to wait for, you know, donations so we can eat."

Garcia said her experience inspired her to pursue a degree in social work.

"It's gonna help me to advocate for people who are oppressed by this society, for people who don't know there is a lot of resources out there that they can get and to just motivate them that if I did, I know they can do it too,"Garcia said.

“It’s a wonderful story, overcoming adversity,” said Rhode Island College President Jack Warner. “It shows the importance of the support systems that we've designed to support students on graduation.”

Garcia will now pursue a master's degree with the hopes of working to address Rhode Island’s growing homelessness crisis.

"The homeless situation is, oh my god, that's so sad. It's something that really needs to be addressed,” said Garcia. "I want to make a difference. I want to be able to provide them the things they need."