Warriors in the Community is a radio segment that features short, insightful interviews with key figures from Wayne State University about the many ways in which the university and its programs make a positive impact on the metro area and on the lives of Detroiters. 

In this episode, we talk with assistant professor Andrea Matti, Ph.D., the director of the Cannabis Chemistry Certificate Program. As the cannabis industry continues to grow, there's an increasing need for professionals with expertise in the testing and regulation sector. Wayne State's Certificate in Cannabis Chemistry will take students for a deep dive into the fundamentals of separation science, laboratory techniques and protocols, research ethics and regulation of the cannabis industry. This unique certificate prepares students for careers in cannabis testing and regulation, including both CBD and THC-a growing field both locally and nationally.

Announcer:  This is Warriors in the Community, brought to you by Wayne State University. And now to learn about how Wayne State is positively impacting our communities, here's Darrell Dawsey.

Darrell Dawsey: Today we're joined by Andrea Matti, Assistant Professor in the Chemistry Department and Director of the Cannabis Chemistry Certificate Program. Welcome, Andrea.

Andrea Matti: Thank you. 

Darrell Dawsey: Give us an overview.

Andrea Matti: So the Cannabis Certificate that we have offered at Wayne State is a testing certificate. Because it's an undergrad certificate, its requirements would be 60 credit hours. and a minimum GPA of 2. 5. You can also have a bachelor's degree from Wayne State or another institution.

Because these are chemistry courses, to start the sequence, we would need a General Chemistry 1 and General Chemistry 2 course completed.

Darrell Dawsey: Why is a program like this, uh, necessary? Is the state cannabis industry exploding that much?

Andrea Matti: Michigan marijuana sales are supposed to hit 3 billion. We need testing and regulation.

Darrell Dawsey: What kind of students is this program aimed at?

Andrea Matti: Most of the students! that major in chemistry and the biochem, or these sciences, are geared toward health sciences. So we have a lot of pre med students, pre PA, pre pharm, but we want something for students who don't want to get into the medical field, who don't want to be in a health science, but they do enjoy the chemistry.

So this is a certificate that can be used down that path. A lot of testing facilities have reached out and, you know, want to see about collaborations or just want to get to know what we're doing at Wayne State, and everything has been so positive that I've heard from people from conception to fruition.

This has been a year in the making. There's two underlying themes that I've seen. One is that everybody has told me this industry allows them to be themselves. And then the second is that everything is so new. It's breakthrough. Everything you do from the protocols to SOPs to standards, everything you contribute is something new and exciting.

Darrell Dawsey: Andrea, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate you.

Andrea Matti: Thank you.

Announcer: This has been Warriors in the Community. For more Wayne State news, please visit us online at today. wayne. edu slash wwj and join us here next Monday at the same time for more Warriors in the Community.