Quinebaug Valley Community College is set to launch the first cannabis program in Connecticut, with classes set to begin this summer. While the cannabis sector in the state is still in its early stages, it’s experiencing increasing demand, according to Professor Brian Kaufman, who presided over the development of the program. Kaufman is also the interim academic division director at the Danielson-based college.
A need for cannabis academic program
Professor Kaufman underscored that the establishment of cannabis program in learning institutions is just a matter of time.
There’s definitely a need for information and knowledge. It’s going to happen. We just don’t know how big it’s going to be, Kaufman said.
Connecticut already legalizes medical marijuana while decriminalizing adult-use cannabis. Only 11 states in the U.S. including Vermont, Maine, and Massachusetts have fully allowed recreational marijuana in their territories.
According to a news release from the college, the first cannabis program targets various courses including botany, alternative medicine, business, and communications. The program will start its first course in entrepreneurship this summer. Professor Kaufman said he’s received several inquiries from students since the announcement and he’s optimistic that all the 28 seats will be filled during the summer course.
Other courses in the pipeline include cannabis horticulture, current cannabis law, and policy. Starting as a certificate program, students who enroll for the Cannabis studies course this coming June would graduate by May 2021, upon successful completion.
Main instructors
Quinebaug College will involve Virginia Champagne, the owner of Blueberry Hill Organic Farm in South Killingly, as one of the principal instructors in the program. The Blueberry Farm produces “over 200 varieties of berries, melons, greens, vegetables and poultry,” a college news release stated.
Recently, it added hemp to its list. Champagne brings knowledge and a wealth of experience as a farmer, researcher, and a member of the town’s agricultural commission. The college revealed that while the number of cannabis-related courses in higher learning institutions is increasing, only a few institutions offer certificate or degree programs.
Currently, Colorado State University Pueblo and Larner College of Medicine (a constituent college of the University of Vermont), offer cannabis-related studies at certificate or degree levels. Kaufman said he already got the full support, albeit with a string of questions, at various levels of administrative approval required to kick-start the program.
I’ve joked previously that this is a gateway program into other courses of study… whether liberal arts and sciences or general studies or business, Kaufman stated.
Based in Danielson, Connecticut, Quinebaug Valley Community College is a government-sponsored institution of higher learning. It runs on a semester-based academic year, offering associate degree as the highest level of study.
