The month of October is known for many things. If you are a H.B.C.U. alum like myself, the only thing that really matters is homecoming.

Every year, Historically Black Colleges and Universities around the country host homecoming ceremonies. It’s a great time to see old friends, take a look at how the campus looks and network. And also party a little bit.

Underneath it all, homecoming is a celebration of growth.

HBCUs are growing in thought. A select few schools have taken a look around and noticed that the business of cannabis has grown into a multi-billion dollar industry. It’s only right that schools start adding cannabis to part of their curriculums.

These HBCUs are cultivating a new generation of cannabis entrepreneurs. Can you imagine what homecoming is going to look like in a few years at these schools?

Florida A&M

In 2017, Florida A&M launched a cannabis program. The school hosts initiatives to teach the community more about the benefits of medical cannabis.

The FAMU MMERI was launched in response to the Florida Legislature’s funding allocation to educate “minorities about marijuana for medical use and the impact of the unlawful use of marijuana on minority communities.”  

Southern University

When it comes to medical cannabis in Louisiana, Southern University is plays a crucial role.

Through the Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center and their partnership with Ilera Holistic Healthcare. Helmed by Howard University’s former Director of S.T.E.M Education, Dr. Chanda Macias, the school is allowed to produce THC products for the state.

North Carolina A&T

North Carolina A&T is also in the business of producing quality flowers for research. The school’s industrial hemp program searches to identify the best hemp varieties for producing CBD in North Carolina, determine what varieties of hemp will grow in parts of the state, assess soil health and more. 

Alabama A&M

Like Southern, Alabama A&M is a unique position to not just help students but help the state. A&M is one of five schools in the state that are allowed to cultivate hemp for research purposes.

Tuskegee University

Like Alabama A&M, Tuskegee was named one of the five schools in Alabama allowed to cultivate help for research purposes. The research at Tuskegee designed will benefit producers by identifying the best varieties and innovative research techniques that should be used under state guidelines to ensure industrial hemp is cultivated efficiently and profitably.

Alabama State

Through the ASU’s Industrial Hemp & Entomology Research Lab students are able to research growing practices for hemp.

Medgar Evers College

Brooklyn’s Medgar Evers College, became the first City University of New York (CUNY) campus to offer a cannabis minor degree program. Students can now enroll in “Introduction to the World of Cannabis,” a prerequisite course for many of the other cannabis courses in this degree program.

Clark-Atlanta University 

At historic Clark-Atlanta University the nation’s first certificate in regulatory affairs on cannabis control. Started in 2019, The program course load focused on the business of cannabis.

A strictly online course, lessons are to prepare you with the skills and the knowledge base to understand the impacts of legalization of cannabis in our communities, states, and nation.