LCO launches cannabis education amid growing interest and cautious state landscape

By Joe Morey

News Editor

The Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) community is expanding cannabis education on two tracks this fall: a free public seminar series hosted by the LCO Cannabis Advisory Network and a for-credit science course at Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University (LCOOU). Together, they aim to build community literacy, workforce skills, and a factual understanding of the plant’s medical, legal, and economic dimensions.

Monthly “Education on Cannabis Seminars” begin with four-part medical series

According to LCO Cannabis Consultant Thi Le, the LCO Cannabis Advisory Network (LCO CAN) has launched the Education on Cannabis Seminars (ECS)—free sessions held monthly and open to Tribal and non-Tribal participants. The kick-off is a four-week medical cannabis mini-series with Dr. Rosado on Mondays from 10:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.: Oct. 20, Oct. 27, Nov. 3, and Nov. 10 at LCO Ojibwe University, presented in collaboration with LCOOU and Ignite. Topics include Cannabis Risks & Considerations; Medical Cannabis for Chronic Pain & MS; Medical Cannabis for Epilepsy & Cancer Care; and Medical Cannabis for Mental Wellness.

The LCO CAN is a community-facing working group that coordinates cannabis education, hands-on learning, and workforce pipelines, partnering with LCOOU on pilot classes and seminars and keeping members informed about the Tribe’s developing cannabis initiatives. The Network has helped stand up a community education pilot and is connected to broader Tribal efforts (including task-force work) to research best practices and build regulatory and business readiness.

LCOOU adds cannabis science to the curriculum

On the academic side, LCOOU is offering NAT-106: Cannabis Science this fall, covering the plant’s history and legality, botany and pharmacology, environmental significance, industry operations, and applications in medical research and therapy.

According to a recent article at WDIO.com, the university’s farm, already growing hemp, serves as a living lab. Students will visit the farm to study cultivation and, as capacity grows, explore industrial fiber hemp applications for textiles, construction, and even 3D printing. Staff note they are working toward Northern-hardy varieties and planning larger plots in future seasons.

State context: research advances while legalization lags

Wisconsin remains without a comprehensive medical cannabis program; state law currently allows only low-THC, high-CBD products. LCOU’s research-focused approach fits within federal and state parameters (including the 2018 Farm Bill’s <0.3% THC hemp definition) while Tribal leaders continue exploring long-term medical and economic opportunities, the WDIO article reports.

LCO leaders also point to Public Law 280, which extends state criminal jurisdiction in Wisconsin Indian Country, as a complicating factor for medical marijuana regulation and program development, even as other states’ tribes move faster under different legal regimes. Reporting this summer detailed how PL-280 shapes strategy across Wisconsin tribal cannabis projects.

“The stigma of the ’70s and ’80s … told everyone, ‘Don’t do drugs,’” LCO Vice Chairman Bill Trepanier told WDIO, adding that cannabis “does have large medicinal value” the Tribe wants to make available to people.

WDIO’s coverage also notes LCOOU’s collaboration with UW–Madison researchers on hemp science and the Tribe’s stepwise plan: keeping the farm in a research lane now, with potential expansion as permitting and policy evolve.

Public Law 280, sovereignty, and why Wisconsin is different

What is PL-280? A federal statute that extends certain state criminal jurisdiction into Indian Country in specific states, including Wisconsin.

Why it matters: Even with tribal sovereignty, Wisconsin tribes must navigate state prohibitions that apply under PL-280. This makes developing medical cannabis more complex than in non-PL-280 states or states that already legalized medical/recreational cannabis.

Where LCO fits: The Tribe is taking a research-first, education-forward approach; seminars for the public, a for-credit university course, and hemp research at the LCOU farm, so the community builds knowledge and capacity while legal pathways continue to be evaluated.

According to Trepanier, these parallel efforts, public seminars and a university course, signal LCO’s focus on accurate education, health literacy, and workforce preparation while Tribal leaders navigate Wisconsin’s unique legal terrain. “They also build local capacity so that, if/when policy shifts, community members are ready for compliant medical, research, and industry opportunities.”