Stockton University has added a new minor in cannabis studies, it announced Thursday.
The new minor will address issues surrounding medical marijuana use in the state and also focus on the proposed legalization of recreational marijuana.
“This is a growing industry and we want to prepare our students from a variety of academic viewpoints,” Ekaterina Sedia, associate professor of biology and program coordinator for the cannabis studies minor program, said.
Topics in the minor, the Galloway-based university said, will include legal, social justice, health, financial and economic issues associated with medicinal and recreational marijuana. It will also focus on the history of marijuana legislation and how businesses can develop in the industry.
“We will not be telling students what is the right thing to do,” Sedia said. “We will be providing a context and information that they can use to make their own decisions. Offering a program is not an endorsement.”
Classes for the program will start this semester. It already has 25 students enrolled, Stockton said.
“No matter how you feel about it, it is providing job opportunities,” Sedia said. “This is an issue that affects law, business, banking, investment, health sciences and social work. The minor is a way to offer our students the opportunity to study the issues.”
Stockton also announced it has begun offering a minor in migration studies, a concentration in business analytics in the business studies program, a concentration in international affairs in the political science program and a new Bachelor of Arts in liberal arts with a concentration in community leadership and civic engagement.
