Education

A new collegiate athletics proposal would remove marijuana from the list of substances included in drug screenings for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship competitions, with officials set to vote on the matter in June. Proponents say the approach is consistent with designing rules to focus on reducing harm rather than punishing student athletes. The plan would build on a 2022 change that increased the allowable THC threshold for college athletes, aligning NCAA’s rules with those of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The… Read more.

Colleges located in states where recreational marijuana was legalized within the last decade experienced a noteworthy, albeit transient, surge in applications from high-achieving students. Additionally, there was a general increase in overall application numbers. These are the principal findings from a recent study, which was recently published in the peer-reviewed journal Contemporary Economic Policy. During the year when a specific state legalized recreational marijuana, the respective colleges witnessed a growth in applications of approximately 5.5% more than colleges situated in states… Read more.

State and local marijuana regulators, industry stakeholders and advocates and opponents of legalization took part in a two-day session hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) this week, sharing their perspectives on evolving cannabis policies. This marked the second NASEM Committee meeting for its “Public Health Consequences of Changes in the Cannabis Policy Landscape” series. In September, the conversation featured representatives of several federal agencies who weighed in on the subject. For this week’s round, many of the… Read more.

The Washington State Department of Commerce released a document this week recommending how $200 million should be spent to address racial, economic and social disparities created by the war on drugs. The 92-page Community Reinvestment Plan was developed by the department, the state Office of Equity and the Harriet Tubman Foundation for Safe Passage, which together worked with community members to advise how the reinvestment money should be spent. The plan, paid for out of the state’s general fund, next… Read more.

The New York Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) published a two-page report entitled “Cannabis and Fentanyl: Facts and Unknowns” to demystify the facts and myths of the two substances, specifically that of fentanyl contaminating cannabis. “The goal of this fact sheet is to provide evidence where it is available, to share information about what is currently known and unknown, and to provide safety tips to help alleviate some of these misconceptions, often spread through misinformed media coverage and anecdotal reporting,”… Read more.

Agricultural scientists at Texas’ Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) have received a $299,162 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to study the use of hemp as animal feed.    The three-year study will be conducted by research scientists from the university’s Department of Agriculture, Nutrition and Human Ecology and will focus on the nutritional profile of industrial hemp plant biomass byproducts, and their impact on goats, to determine if hemp biomass can… Read more.

The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CMAS) last week recommended removal of cannabis from its list of banned substances for all three divisions, calling instead for a “robust educational strategy.” The organization first announced in June they were considering the reforms.  The committee concluded that removing cannabis from its testing protocols acknowledges the ineffectiveness of existing policy, which includes banning, testing, and penalizing; affirms the role of the NCAA drug-testing program to address only performance-enhancing substances; and… Read more.

A National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) committee is formally recommending that its divisional governing bodies remove marijuana from the list of banned substances list for college athletes. The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports said on Friday that members met this week and decided to advise all three of the association’s governing bodies to introduce and enact legislation to stop testing and punishing players for cannabinoids. This comes three months after the committee first signaled its interest… Read more.

After years of preparation, marijuana use for recreational purposes may soon be legalized in Ohio. Since its clearance on August 16th, the proposal has undergone significant evolution and faced various challenges. These challenges include resistance from lawmakers who declined to deliberate on it and the necessity to gather additional valid signatures to meet the ballot qualification criteria. If passed, the proposal would grant individuals aged 21 and above the right to buy, possess, and cultivate up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis… Read more.

New Mexico is rolling out its first media campaign to educate the public about responsible cannabis use, the Associated Press reports. The “Yes & Know” campaign is centered around the phrase “Yes – cannabis is legal. Know – the rules,” and will be featured on billboards, TV, radio, print, and digital advertisements throughout this month. The ad buy is worth $400,000.  Linda Trujillo, who heads the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, which oversees the cannabis division, told the AP that state officials “recognize… Read more.

SUNY Cobleskill is a college geared toward agriculture, farming and sustainability. Students study the ins and outs of agriculture, from animal science to landscape management. The school also has major programs in graphic design technology and the culinary arts. Starting last fall, students from these courses of study have consulted with Lesley Judd to join SUNY-Cobleskill’s newest minor: Cannabis Studies. “Almost every freshman we get here comes to talk to me about interest in doing the minor,” Judd said. “They see… Read more.

These days, you can’t dismiss someone seeking a career in cannabis as merely an aspiring hippie looking to drift in and out of euphoric, philosophical thoughts fueled by THC. Human use of the cannabis plant dates back thousands of years. Over the millennia, cannabis experienced major changes in popularity and social perception. With recent advancements in research, legislation and public demand, cannabis now plays a significant role in both the economy and society. NORML reported in 2022 that over 428,000 people… Read more.

As many U.S. states adopt policies that legalize the commercialization of cannabis, Yale School of Medicine recently announced the creation of the new Yale Center for the Science of Cannabis and Cannabinoids, which will investigate the acute and chronic effects of cannabis and cannabinoids on neurodevelopment and mental health. Its inaugural director will be Deepak Cyril D’Souza, the Albert E. Kent Professor of Psychiatry and an expert in the pharmacology of cannabinoids. The new center comes just as retail cannabis sales begins in… Read more.

It’s been a quarter-century since California became the first state to legalize medical marijuana. Since then, cannabis has evolved significantly. The last decade in particular has seen a dramatic shift with regards to reform; most states have legalized the plant for either medicinal and/or adult use. In fact, the legal cannabis industry is now responsible for more than 300,000 full-time jobs in the U.S.   As the landscape changes and the stigma surrounding cannabis wanes, one thing remains clear: Access… Read more.

Olive-Harvey College in Pullman, Illinois will offer a first-of-its-kind Associate Degree in Applied Cannabis Studies including courses in hemp horticulture, cannabis and the law, and basic chemistry. Pullman, Illinois’ Olive-Harvey College is now offering an associate degree in Applied Cannabis Studies next year, which will make it the first community college in the state to offer a cannabis-focused degree program, WGN9 reports. Courses will include cannabis and the law, hemp horticulture, basic chemistry, and general botany.  Dr. Kimberly Hollingsworth, Olive-Harvey College president, said… Read more.