‘What Were Vices Are Now Habits': The New Pot Program at KVCC

My how times have changed.

If you planted someone from 20 years ago into 2022 Kalamazoo or Michigan, they wouldn't believe it. The Doobie Brothers released an album back in the 70's titled "What Were Once Vices are Now Habits", and we are living that right now.

Growing up, you placed your bets with a guy who operated out of a tavern or corner store. Now, virtually every town has a casino, and every casino has an app, so everyone inside the state borders can place a wager.

Moving on to booze, craft beer exploded and there are almost as many craft breweries as there are dollar stores (and for that hypothetical person in the last paragraph, those were then called "dime stores" or "five and dimes") or credit unions.

Which brings us to marijuana, or cannabis. Since the legalization of pot in Michigan, we've seen an explosion of pot shops open up, maybe almost as many as dollar stores and credit unions. And you have to credit to the folks running Kalamazoo Valley Community College. They've been smart (and maybe opportunistic) and saw when craft beer got very popular, that maybe a curriculum to be able to create beer would be a good idea, and now KVCC has an award-winning program.

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KVCC is taking the same tack with cannabis. This line from the school's web page for this cannabis program is straight out of one of those TV commercials you see late at night. "The cannabis industry is creating thousands of exciting career opportunities in Michigan and yet, nationally, a significant shortage of qualified professionals exists." The idea is to offer three different certifications: one for growing, one for provisioning and another about the business of cannabis.

So, you, too, can work with cannabis. But one funny thing. Even though there's a cannabis program at the school, the rule is strict. The school says "No. There are no cannabis substances allowed on any campus." It's a funny world we live in.