Cleveland School Of Cannabis Becomes First Of Its Kind To Be Accredited

CLEVELAND, OH – As more students pursue careers in the cannabis industry, one school in Ohio has achieved an important academic distinction.

According to a report by WCMH, the Cleveland School of Cannabis has become the country’s first school of its kind to receive accreditation by the Middle States Association-CESS (MSA-CESS).

The MSA-CESS is a non-profit organization that has evaluated public and private educational institutions for accreditation for over 125 years.  The association voted unanimously to bestow formal accreditation on the Cleveland School of Cannabis which offers 16 classes covering three main categories, according to itsvice president Kevin Greene.  They are:

Cultivation: the growing of cannabis on a commercial level.
Extraction: creating the wide range of edible products and everything outside of cannabis flowers.
Dispensary operations: working in commercial marijuana shops and patient interaction.

Greene said the Cleveland School of Cannabis underwent a three-year process during which it was scrutinized by the MSA-CESS to determine whether it was worthy of accreditation.

“You actually get audited in person,” Greene was quoted as saying. “There’s an audit team, that comes out and visits the campus. They spend three days on campus, they interview all staff, they interview students … and then from those interviews and their assessments from on campus, they then make a determination of your status of accreditation.”

The school, which opened in 2017, said interest in its courses has grown dramatically since recreational marijuana was approved in Ohio in November 2023.

“This is a really exciting time to be in the cannabis space in Ohio,” said Nicole Fenix, the Director of Education at the Cleveland School of Cannabis. “It’s becoming more mainstream to talk about cannabis. People are coming out of the woodwork because they’re not scared anymore and it’s accepted.”

CSC offers in-person and online programs in horticulture, processing, and dispensary operations.  Since its inception, it has accepted students from 28 states and graduated over 1,000 individuals.  Now the school is taking pride in its 10-year accreditation.

“The accreditation of CSC by Middle States Association-CESS marks a significant step forward for the cannabis industry, driven by a broader acceptance of cannabis and its related fields within the formal education system,” according to a school statement which added, “This formal recognition could pave the way for further advancements in cannabis research, education, and professional development, bridging the gap between the burgeoning cannabis market and academic legitimacy.”

This story is just one of many you’ll find in the Cannabis News section of Cannabutter Digest, your go-to resource for all things cannabis-related. Check out our site to find tasty recipes, useful product reviews, and so much more!