The University of Cincinnati (UC) has launched one of the first higher education programs in the United States to offer a cannabis studies certificate, the course focuses on different fields of knowledge such as history, culture, society, and regulations. The program has UC professors from different fields of knowledge, such as political science, biology, psychology among others.
The creation of the program was influenced by Sue Trusty, professor of the horticulture program in the Faculty of Design, Art, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) who had already been given introductory courses in hemp and medicinal cannabis.
Trusty says “the cannabis industry is a huge job market”. This is one of the main reasons she was an advocate for pushing for this certificate program.
There is a complex process from the time you grow cannabis, to its distribution and sale. There must be people who know how to grow it, know the right humidity, light, and temperature conditions and know all the stages of the plant’s development.
Then you need to know how to harvest and process it. You must be careful with the drying of the plant depending on the objective you are looking for and watch for the appearance of fungi which damage the crop for human consumption.
Then you have to perform tests, and there you need people in the laboratory. Then comes the process of distribution, sale and manufacturing of all the products that are produced with the crop.
These include oils, vape cartridges, edibles and all the other products. Finally, it is sold in a dispensary, where we have business owners and people who need to know about marketing strategies, advertising, and regulatory laws.
Trusty says that much of the information on the Internet about cannabis is false due to the lack of research opportunities.
“Because it is illegal, a lot of the information on it [cannabis] is just garbage and faux,” she said. “There is not a lot of research-based information. The government and universities have avoided doing that kind of research because it’s illegal.”
She hopes that providing this education to students can help break the stigma around the plant and learn more about its utility in the field of medicine and explore it as a sustainable alternative.
The two-year program includes five 3-credit courses, according to the university’s website, including Trusty’s medical hemp and cannabis course, a hands-on hop and hemp field experience course, and three courses chosen from various possibilities, based on the student’s interest or work preference.
Students already pursuing a degree in any college at UC can add the certificate to their program.
With all that said, progress is being made with bringing cannabis to the University level, and this is good for everyone involved.
This article was summarized by an article that originally appeared on newsrecord.org1