With recreational marijuana now in full swing in Ohio, some students might have a burning desire to enter this growing industry.
Cannabis studies aren't new to Ohio colleges and universities. In 2018, Hocking College launched the first laboratory sciences associates degree program in the U.S. specializing in cannabis. The public two-year technical college in Athens County is licensed through the state to test medical marijuana.
The University of Cincinnati was among the first to offer a cannabis studies certificate in 2020, a multidisciplinary program offered through the College of Design, Art, Architecture, Art and Planning's horticulture program.
And the Cleveland College of Cannabis became the first and only accredited cannabis school in the country , offering four majors and three minor programs exclusively focused on the agriculture, production and the business of marijuana.
As the marijuana industry expands in Ohio, so do the state's higher education options. More Ohio colleges are expanding their academic offerings to include cannabis-centric certificate programs.
Kent State University and Zane State College both recently launched multiple certificate programs to meet the growing demand. Both schools are working with Green Flower , a California-based cannabis education and training company that develops course curriculums for colleges and universities, according to company CEO Max Simon.
Simon said Green Flower works with 62 schools nationwide. The programs will differ slightly from each other based on the institution, he said.
Kent State, a public four-year university, is offering five "deep dive" programs, Simon said. The programs are fully online and take six months to complete. The majors include: cannabis health care and medicine, cannabis agriculture and horticulture, the business of cannabis, cannabis compliance and risk management, and cannabis product development and design.
Zane State's programs, however, meet different needs, Simon said.
The Muskingum County community college will offer three noncredit workforce certificate programs starting this fall, said Tracey Porter, Zane State's associate dean of workforce development. They will be focused on cultivation, retail, extraction and product development.
Porter said the college was looking into cannabis education before the pandemic and was finally able to make it a reality.
"Workforce development is at our core," Porter said. "For me, the question is always, 'How can we give employers and potential students the education they need to further their careers?'"
The programs are self-paced, online only and should take students about 10 weeks to complete. But quick doesn't mean low quality, Porter said.
"These are very short-term, very career and industry specific," she said. "It's not going to take two years. These are very nimble."
The cadence of each program is set up so that students can earn all three certificates in about six months. Porter said the response from potential students has been great, especially among entreprenuers and small business owners. While enrollment numbers aren't yet official, Porter said the college exceeded its enrollment goals for the first cohort.
Both Simon and Porter said there is a lot of diversity among students looking to enter the cannabis industry. The majority of students, Simon said, are working adults. Only about 15% of students enrolled in these programs are undergraduates.
Some are folks currently in the industry looking to upskill and move up in their careers. There are people looking to switch careers and step into the cannabis world. And many others are doctors, nurses and pharmacists looking to expand their knowledge, Simon said.
There is more room for growth within cannabis education. Many top-tier research universities aren't involved in cannabis research or education because marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, Simon said. Until that changes, he said most schools won't be able to offer hands-on lab experiences.
But there are bright spots, Simon said. Both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris support pro-marijuana legislation, the first time presidential candidates from the major parties have shared the stance. And as more states move toward legislation, the more opportunities students will have to learn, he said.
"There's a running joke that this is just a bunch of stoners, but it is an incredibly intelligent and nuanced group of students," he said. "In order to be successful in this industry, you really do need a good education."
Sheridan Hendrix is a higher education reporter for The Columbus Dispatch. Sign up for Extra Credit, her education newsletter, here .
shendrix@dispatch.com
@sheridan120
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Not 'just a bunch of stoners.' More Ohio colleges offering cannabis studies programs
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