OK, before we delve into Med Grow Cannabis College and its myriad innovations in marijuana education, let's get the dumb dope jokes out of the way.
Yes, the college does give new meaning to the phrase "higher education". But those who run the school are serious about their pedagogical mission — to train participants in Michigan's newly legalised medical marijuana program in the finer points of growing and cooking weed.
"People assume it's a wild environment because of the stereotypes about marijuana," says Perry Belcher, who teaches the history of cannabis at Med Grow, "but it really is a place of education."
Med Grow's classroom — there is only one — resembles any other college classroom. Right now 16 students are sitting at wooden desks, jotting notes while Todd Alton delivers a lecture in his Horticulture 1010 class.
Mr Alton, 36, has a botany degree from Northern Michigan University and plenty of hands-on experience growing pot, although he does not go into detail. He is also a former chef and teaches a class on cooking with dope.
For the laboratory portion of his class he unlocks heavy padlocks and swings two doors open to reveal a pair of blazingly bright rooms containing 10 marijuana plants. This is the on-campus pot farm.
Nick Tennant, 24, may be the only college president in the US who founded his school because the recession was killing his car-detailing business.
"As the economy started drifting down, my business started contracting," he says. "I knew I wanted to get into an industry that was limitless, that was poised for growth."
In November last year Michigan voters passed a referendum legalising medical marijuana by a landslide margin of 63 per cent to 37 per cent, making it one of 13 states to permit its use. Michigan residents can become state-certified marijuana patients if a doctor declares that pot might alleviate their suffering from diseases ranging from cancer to "chronic pain".
Patients can possess up to 70 grams of marijuana and 12 pot plants. They are also allowed to buy the weed from their official "caregiver", who can legally grow marijuana for up to five patients. The state has certified 5463 patients and 2247 caregivers.
Mr Tennant is a marijuana patient — he suffers from "chronic nausea". He and his friends pondered how to use the new law to make money. "We said, 'How can we help people and create a viable business model?' And we came up with this business."
Mr Tennant sold his car business and founded Med Grow Cannabis College, advertising for professors on medical marijuana websites. He touts the weed as a way to jump start Michigan's battered economy. It has America's highest unemployment rate, 15.1 per cent.
It seems unlikely that Michigan can float to prosperity on a cloud of marijuana smoke. But in a state where last year's illicit dope dealer can become this year's state-certified caregiver, many residents are eager to earn a piece of the estimated $US13 billion ($14 billion) Americans spend on marijuana every year.
"Anybody that's out of work, here's an industry that's welcoming you with open arms," Mr Tennant says.
Med Grow is not America's first marijuana college. Since 2007 5000 students have studied at Oaksterdam University's three campuses in California, a state where 300,000 patients can legally buy pot from 700 dispensaries.
At Med Grow students pay $475 for a six-week night-school course that includes classes in marijuana history, marijuana law, the basics of business and courses in how to grow and cook marijuana.
"The students are a mixed bag," says Paul Youngs, a lawyer who teaches Med Grow's law class. "We have patients who want to grow for themselves. We have people who want to be caregivers and who approach it as a business opportunity. We even had a priest who works with AIDS patients."
"It's pretty awesome," says Roger McDaniel, 53, who was in Med Grow's first graduating class.
He is a carpenter with a long white beard and a Christ tattoo that bears the caption "Got Jesus?" Since hurting his back in a motorcycle accident he has suffered from chronic pain and is now a state-certified marijuana patient who swears the weed works better than his pain pills.
He plans to take Med Grow's advanced horticulture class next year, but he may not get the chance. Some Michigan bureaucrats are wondering: is it legal to operate a trade school to train marijuana growers?
"We have to look into the legality of it," says James McCurtis, of the Michigan Department of Community Health.
Judith Booker, a grandmother, sits with her friend Jacquelyn White. Each has a notebook and the school's official textbook Marijuana Horticulture. They are retired social workers who volunteer in Detroit.
"We're here to get information that we can share with our group about how to grow it," Ms White, 58, says. "In the metro Detroit area we have a disproportionate number of HIV and hepatitis patients. They need to know how they can use this for palliative care."
"It's an up-and-coming industry," Mrs Booker, 65, says. "I've been trying to push young people to get into an industry — any industry but the car industry."
News Hawk- Ganjarden 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald
Contact: The Sydney Morning Herald
Copyright: 2009. Fairfax Digital
Website: Making A Hash Of Higher Education
Yes, the college does give new meaning to the phrase "higher education". But those who run the school are serious about their pedagogical mission — to train participants in Michigan's newly legalised medical marijuana program in the finer points of growing and cooking weed.
"People assume it's a wild environment because of the stereotypes about marijuana," says Perry Belcher, who teaches the history of cannabis at Med Grow, "but it really is a place of education."
Med Grow's classroom — there is only one — resembles any other college classroom. Right now 16 students are sitting at wooden desks, jotting notes while Todd Alton delivers a lecture in his Horticulture 1010 class.
Mr Alton, 36, has a botany degree from Northern Michigan University and plenty of hands-on experience growing pot, although he does not go into detail. He is also a former chef and teaches a class on cooking with dope.
For the laboratory portion of his class he unlocks heavy padlocks and swings two doors open to reveal a pair of blazingly bright rooms containing 10 marijuana plants. This is the on-campus pot farm.
Nick Tennant, 24, may be the only college president in the US who founded his school because the recession was killing his car-detailing business.
"As the economy started drifting down, my business started contracting," he says. "I knew I wanted to get into an industry that was limitless, that was poised for growth."
In November last year Michigan voters passed a referendum legalising medical marijuana by a landslide margin of 63 per cent to 37 per cent, making it one of 13 states to permit its use. Michigan residents can become state-certified marijuana patients if a doctor declares that pot might alleviate their suffering from diseases ranging from cancer to "chronic pain".
Patients can possess up to 70 grams of marijuana and 12 pot plants. They are also allowed to buy the weed from their official "caregiver", who can legally grow marijuana for up to five patients. The state has certified 5463 patients and 2247 caregivers.
Mr Tennant is a marijuana patient — he suffers from "chronic nausea". He and his friends pondered how to use the new law to make money. "We said, 'How can we help people and create a viable business model?' And we came up with this business."
Mr Tennant sold his car business and founded Med Grow Cannabis College, advertising for professors on medical marijuana websites. He touts the weed as a way to jump start Michigan's battered economy. It has America's highest unemployment rate, 15.1 per cent.
It seems unlikely that Michigan can float to prosperity on a cloud of marijuana smoke. But in a state where last year's illicit dope dealer can become this year's state-certified caregiver, many residents are eager to earn a piece of the estimated $US13 billion ($14 billion) Americans spend on marijuana every year.
"Anybody that's out of work, here's an industry that's welcoming you with open arms," Mr Tennant says.
Med Grow is not America's first marijuana college. Since 2007 5000 students have studied at Oaksterdam University's three campuses in California, a state where 300,000 patients can legally buy pot from 700 dispensaries.
At Med Grow students pay $475 for a six-week night-school course that includes classes in marijuana history, marijuana law, the basics of business and courses in how to grow and cook marijuana.
"The students are a mixed bag," says Paul Youngs, a lawyer who teaches Med Grow's law class. "We have patients who want to grow for themselves. We have people who want to be caregivers and who approach it as a business opportunity. We even had a priest who works with AIDS patients."
"It's pretty awesome," says Roger McDaniel, 53, who was in Med Grow's first graduating class.
He is a carpenter with a long white beard and a Christ tattoo that bears the caption "Got Jesus?" Since hurting his back in a motorcycle accident he has suffered from chronic pain and is now a state-certified marijuana patient who swears the weed works better than his pain pills.
He plans to take Med Grow's advanced horticulture class next year, but he may not get the chance. Some Michigan bureaucrats are wondering: is it legal to operate a trade school to train marijuana growers?
"We have to look into the legality of it," says James McCurtis, of the Michigan Department of Community Health.
Judith Booker, a grandmother, sits with her friend Jacquelyn White. Each has a notebook and the school's official textbook Marijuana Horticulture. They are retired social workers who volunteer in Detroit.
"We're here to get information that we can share with our group about how to grow it," Ms White, 58, says. "In the metro Detroit area we have a disproportionate number of HIV and hepatitis patients. They need to know how they can use this for palliative care."
"It's an up-and-coming industry," Mrs Booker, 65, says. "I've been trying to push young people to get into an industry — any industry but the car industry."
News Hawk- Ganjarden 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald
Contact: The Sydney Morning Herald
Copyright: 2009. Fairfax Digital
Website: Making A Hash Of Higher Education
