St. FX pot partnership to give students on-the-job training

A deal between a Nova Scotia university and a newly licensed medical marijuana company aims to give students on-the-job training in a budding industry.

St.Francis XavierUniversity has signed a three-year agreement withTHCDispensaries Canada Inc.near Antigonish, N.S., that includes co-op placements for students that could start asearly as thisspring.

"It will be very exciting for them, and it will also be very exciting for us to meet some of these students, and hopefully hold on to them after they graduate," said the company's president, FrankMacMaster.

MacMaster said about 20 to 30 students will be takingpart in the co-op program as the company begins growing cannabis at its 7,000-square-foot facility.

THC Dispensaries was licensed by Health Canada to growmedical marijuana in December one of two companies in the province given the green light and plans to expand into the recreational field as well.

The companystill needs approval from Health Canada to sell its product.

There arejust five employees right now, but MacMaster said as the facility grows, so will its workforce.

Quality assurance to field workers

He expects to hirea team of 100 to 120 people if all goes as planned and the company expands on his eight-hectare property sometimein the next year.

MacMaster saidstudents in the business andsciencefields will be chosen,and could be doinganything from quality assuranceto helping to grow the plantsto working in administration.

"We're going to require a lot of manpower and we just happen to be lucky enough to be in the town and county of Antigonish, so we have such a draw with a great facility like St. FX," said MacMaster.

Laurie Boucher,mayor of the Town of Antigonish, said it's an exciting developmentfor a small townthat doesn't havemany large employers.

"One of our biggest challenges is having our youth outsourced," she said. "If we could have people come into our community, and gain a full-time employment, I think it's fantastic."

As the federal government works tolegalizerecreational marijuana this year, Boucher said there are many unknowns, but she's happy to hear the drug will be sold through theNova Scotia Liquor Corporation.

"We're thinking, we're having discussions about it. We've had workshops on it we're ready for it, for sure," she said.

Research opportunities

In addition to hiring students, the company will workwith faculty on marijuana-related research projects.

MacMaster said he's hoping to rely on the expertise of faculty members to researchdifferent ways of ingesting the drug, such as oils and pills.

Andrew Kendall, manager of industry liaison and technology transfer at St. FX, said itmakes sense given the work the university is already doing.

And while there are few specifics about what will come out of the research at this point, Kendall knows what he wants to see.

"If I see students employed, if I see researchers involved and busy, if I see research funds coming onto campus, to me those are successes," he said.