May 11—Looking for a career change? New Mexico's cannabis industry is still hot and still growing and earning a certification through an online program at the University of New Mexico can supercharge your entry into the business.

That's according to Max Simon, CEO of Green Flower, which in 2022 partnered with UNM to train and educate people who want to get into the industry — at any level.

Simon says the cannabis education certificate programs help to push back against misinformation about cannabis and stigmatization of users and prepare potential professionals to handle all aspects of the industry.

Simon describes the New Mexico cannabis industry as complex, especially because of its various legal requirements. The industry branches into several sectors, including agriculture, manufacturing, retail, marketing and customer service, all with important compliance requirements. Cannabis entrepreneurs and businesses also have to observe requirements in federal, state, local, banking and health and safety laws.

Despite regulations and recent news of oversaturation of dispensaries, some analysts expect major growth. Simon envisions a better road ahead. The federal government has recommended reclassifying marijuana, which could ultimately reduce stigma, lead to banking reform or even federal legalization, Simon said.

But for those looking to get in on the ground floor right now, the online certificate program at UNM promises you can study on your own time with industry experts, which later provides a leg up when applying for work in the industry. Green Flower's website says it helps cannabis companies of all sizes meet their compliance training needs, onboard new employees, develop stronger leaders with credentials and certifications and build a world-class cannabis organization.

New courses start every six to eight weeks, with the next program scheduled to begin on July 1.

The following conversation has been lightly edited.

Q: Since beginning a couple years back, how is the cannabis certificate program going?

"We have a nice diversity of people going through the different kinds of programs. ... We've been finding people coming to it looking for jobs, we've been finding people looking to start their own businesses, we've been finding people who are in health care that are getting questions from their patients and looking for more information to provide better guidance for people looking to use cannabis medicinally. We even have people that are taking programs just for themselves."

Q: What was the reason for starting the cannabis certificate program?

"Our goal was to equip people with the knowledge they needed. ... There is a lot of misinformation about cannabis because we are coming out of 80 years of prohibition. ... It's been claimed to have no medicinal value. Let's face it, cannabis consumers have been heavily stigmatized as being unproductive or unhealthy people. So, first and foremost, we have to provide some education so that people can update their files a little bit and understand that cannabis is much safer than people realize, and the industry is a lot more exciting and opportunistic than people realize, and that the product can be used as a substitute to many other much more damaging and toxic substances that we already accept in our society. So I think that's one reason, to help educate people about the truth and the facts about cannabis today versus what maybe they've been told or heard through many decades of propaganda. Also, probably the most important reason the program exists is because the cannabis industry is incredibly complex — and currently very difficult. And while I would like to see that change, it is the reality of today and because of that, if you want to work in the industry or start a business in the industry, you really need to go into it with your eyes wide open, to understand the regulations, to understand the diversity of products that are being created, to understand the complexity of the compliance requirements and to understand how to maintain quality and health and safety in this kind of new emerging industry."

Q: What about news that the cannabis industry is oversaturated and some smaller operators are going through changes. Are there actually jobs to be had in the industry?

"The latest research shows that there's about 8,500 people working in the New Mexico cannabis industry and there were about 2,000 jobs added throughout 2023. I think it's a growing sector. As a contrast, there are about 75,000 jobs in California and 45,000 jobs in Michigan and 24,000 jobs in Colorado. The New Mexico market still has quite a bit of room to grow and that's one thing for people to realize, that there's still just a lot of growth ahead."

Q: So the training programs can prepare one to take on any aspect of the industry — from a dispensary job to running a business or being a grower?

"The programs are mapped to each sector of the industry and the sectors are very different. People need to be educated about these different sectors of the industry and what type of skill sets and personality types would be best in each of these, and then they also need the actual skills and understanding that are required to get hired or start a business or service this industry in some specific way."

Q: Is it affordable?

"The programs are priced very affordably because I think that people are discovering the opportunities in cannabis and they need to have an easy entry point to be able to learn and grow and that's been our mission: to make cannabis education more accessible."

Q: With the federal government poised to change marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug, lowering its dangerous classification, how will that affect the industry, in your view?

"It will have a significant impact on businesses for sure and the impact will primarily be felt in terms of tax relief. When cannabis is on Schedule I ... it's basically still treated in the eyes of the federal government as a toxic substance and because of that there's a rule called 280E, which prevents these businesses from deducting any of their operational expenses and as a result of that, you end up basically paying up to 50% more in taxes than any normal business would. So rescheduling would immediately banish 280E and allow cannabis businesses to basically keep a lot more of the money that they generate rather than having to pay it out in taxes."

Q: And this change at the federal level will change how marijuana is viewed?

"We're already seeing that this will pave the way for federal legalization because, again, there's a stigma issue here. Each time the government reorients cannabis to the science and the facts, it allows people to be less afraid of it and to start to approach it from a more scientific and accurate place.

"So, rescheduling will lead to federal legalization, it will lead to banking reform, it will lead to more research and development, and all these things have a direct impact on cannabis businesses because they can't work with their banks, they can't work with their service providers. Oftentimes, the regulations are so heavy-handed, because quite frankly, governments are still afraid of federal law. And so it has a domino effect that ultimately leads to a more honest and factual and scientific cannabis industry, which will just allow it to grow that much bigger."