Jenna Misciascio, a student at Stockton University in Pomona, NJ, hopes to launch a career in the cannabis industry.
“It's not really an industry yet, unless you go into medical,” she told a group of students, teachers and area residents at a forum on the potential economic impact of cannabis legalization in New Jersey on Monday, April 29, 2019. “If the legislation is passed, I want to find a way to combine adult use and hospitality.”
Misciascio is the founder and president of Student Marijuana Alliance for Research and Transparency (SMART) on the Stockton campus. She said she wanted to make sure cannabis remains available to patients and to see adult use approved in New Jersey, seeing it as a source for jobs for herself and her fellow students after graduation.
Her organization sponsored the forum: “Cannabis – The Future of Jobs in New Jersey” at the university. She was joined on the panel by Kelly Crosson, the vice president of the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association, Kelli Hykes, director of government relations at Weedmaps.com, and two people from the Compassionate Care Foundation, a medical marijuana facility in Egg Harbor Township near Stockton; Tim Weigand, the dispensary and facilities manager and Renato Paoli, an assistant grower.
Attorney Bridget Hill Zayat, who specializes in marijuana law and is an adjunct professor who teaches a class on the topic at Stockton, served as moderator.
Will the jobs be there?