Queens College launches marijuana biz course
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Queens College and Farmingdale State College will host a two-day course on getting into the marijuana business in New York in June. AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File
By Jacob Kaye
Two public New York colleges, including one from Queens, are teaming up to offer a two-day course focused on understanding the state’s changing marijuana industry.
Queens College and Farmingdale State College in Long Island will host “Get Started in the Cannabis Industry” next month. The multi-day course aims to teach participants how to open, manage or work in the marijuana business in New York.
“We are pleased to partner with Farmingdale State College on this initiative and to help create a path toward entrepreneurship for populations who had previously been negatively impacted by cannabis legislation,” Queens College President Frank Wu said.
The June 11 and June 18 course will be limited to 25 participants and will feature presentations from the New York State Office of Cannabis Management – the state agency responsible for regulating the budding industry.
The course will cover an introduction into the cannabis industry in the U.S., the role medical marijuana played in the current landscape in New York, the state’s current legal environment surrounding pot, how to market and manage a cannabis business, the economics of the industry, marijuana plant science and production and how to break into the business.
Participants will also learn about Farmingdale’s Cannabis Production and Management Certificate Program and will earn a micro-credential badge at the end of the course.
"Farmingdale State College is at the center of preparing people to work in this newly emerging industry,” Farmingdale State College President John Nader said. “The partnership with Queens College couples Farmingdale's cannabis program with Queens' ability to reach populations who can most benefit from this new opportunity.”
New York State legalized adult use of recreational marijuana in 2021 with the passage of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act. Built into the law were equity provisions, which aim to give opportunities in the industry to people and families negatively affected by the war on drugs.
In March, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the first marijuana licenses handed out by the state would go to people previously convicted of marijuana-related offenses or their family members.
The Queens College and Farmingdale State College course will run from 9:30 a.m., until 5 p.m., on Saturday, June 11, and Saturday, June 18 at Queens College.
Registration, which will cost attendees $25, can be completed at cannabisworkshop.qc.cuny.edu.
