Deported Suffolk County Community College student speaks at graduation from Colombia

Sara Lopez Garcia was not in the room when Suffolk County Community College handed out diplomas, but her voice still reached classmates from Colombia after Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained her in Mastic and sent her through a Louisiana detention center.

The college student, who had been one of the most accomplished on campus, took part in graduation virtually by recording an address from abroad. For Suffolk County, the moment turned a standard commencement into a reminder of how quickly immigration enforcement can uproot a student’s education, family life and future plans.

Garcia had been an honors student at Suffolk County Community College’s Eastern Campus, studying interior design with a 3.9 GPA, according to ABC7 New York. CBS New York reported that she had a near-perfect 4.0 GPA, was a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, and served as a tour guide, club president and volunteer. Her academic record had made her a familiar presence at the school before the arrest.

ICE detained Garcia and her mother at their home in Mastic in May 2025, one day before her commencement. ABC7 reported that agents said they were looking for someone else when they entered the home. Garcia was then held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana, while her 17-year-old brother remained in Mastic and was cared for by neighbors, according to CBS New York and Patch.

Garcia later told Newsday she chose deportation rather than spend months fighting to stay in the United States. “I want my freedom,” she said, adding that she wanted to return to her life and continue studying. Her wedding to Santiago Ruiz Castilla had been scheduled for August 2025, according to CBS New York.

Patch reported that Garcia and her mother were deported to Colombia in August 2025 after more than two months in custody. They were flown first to Bogotá and then on to Bucaramanga. CBS New York also reported that Garcia had come to the United States illegally at age 15, later received special juvenile immigration status, and was in the process of obtaining a green card.

The story left Suffolk County Community College with a graduation moment that was both celebratory and painful. The school gave Garcia a place in the ceremony through a recorded address, but her case also showed how vulnerable immigrant students remain once federal immigration action interrupts their lives. For classmates on Long Island, her graduation from Colombia stood as proof that academic achievement can survive deportation, even when the institution around it cannot protect the student from the separation itself.