{"id":4125,"date":"2022-02-07T21:43:24","date_gmt":"2022-02-07T21:43:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/wp-home\/?p=192963"},"modified":"2022-02-07T21:43:24","modified_gmt":"2022-02-07T21:43:24","slug":"exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/?p=4125","title":{"rendered":"Exit-Now offers cannabis scholarship and expungement resources in Saint Louis, MO"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>  <title>Exit-Now offers cannabis scholarship and expungement resources in Saint Louis, MO | Leafly<\/title>     <!-- This is Index Exchange, a script\/\/3rd-party integration that interjects GAM. It needs to be 'ahead' of GTM in the DOM, which comes from Cephalopod. GTM loads GAM. This script needs to setup it's interjection stuff before GAM loads. --> <!-- End Index Exchange --> <!-- Quotes = strings--><!-- No quotes = boolean-->\t   <!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v17.5 (Yoast SEO v17.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->                  <!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. --> <\/p>\n<p> <!-- BEGIN Sailthru Horizon Meta Information --><\/p>\n<p><!-- END Sailthru Horizon Meta Information -->  <!-- Google Publisher Tag --> <!-- End Google Publisher Tag --> <!-- Google Tag Manager --> <!-- End Google Tag Manager --> <!-- Chartbeat --> <!-- End Chartbeat --><br \/>\n <!-- Google Tag Manager (noscript) -->   <\/p>\n<div id=\"copy_clipboard_success\" class=\"fixed top-0 left-0 right-0\">\n<div class=\"bg-white p-lg container mt-xl flex justify-between elevation-low rounded\"> <span class=\"flex items-center\">     <span class=\"ml-md\">Link copied to your clipboard<\/span> <\/span> <button id=\"copy_clipboard_close_btn\">    <\/button> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <!-- End Google Tag Manager (noscript) -->   <title>Leafly<\/title>     <title>Leafly \u00ae<\/title>                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              <title>Loading\u2026<\/title>                     <\/p>\n<div class=\"bg-white fixed flex hidden inset-0 items-start md:h-auto md:items-center overflow-auto\" id=\"age-gate-container\">\n<div class=\"bg-white md:h-auto mx-auto p-lg text-sm w-full\" id=\"age-gate\">\n<p><label for=\"select-country\">Where are you from?<\/label><\/p>\n<div class=\"age-gate__info\">\n<p><button class=\"button\" data-testid=\"age-gate-no-button\" id=\"tou-cancel\">no<\/button><button class=\"button ml-md\" data-testid=\"age-gate-yes-button\" id=\"tou-continue\">yes<\/button><\/p>\n<p><label class=\"checkbox__label my-xl\"><span class=\"text-xs\" id=\"remember-user-label\">Remember me for 30 days. <br \/>I confirm that this is not a shared device.<\/span><\/label><\/p>\n<p class=\"error error--underage hidden\">Darn! You&#8217;re not old enough to use Leafly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"hidden age-gate__loading\">Redirecting you to<span class=\"redirect-domain\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"text-xs mt-auto\">By accessing this site, you accept<br \/>\nthe <a class=\"py-xl\" data-testid=\"tou-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/info\/terms-of-use\">Terms of Use<\/a><br \/>\nand <a class=\"py-xl\" data-testid=\"pp-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/info\/privacy-policy\">Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"container my-xl\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col md:col-9\" id=\"article-content\">\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">Progressive would not be the first word you would use to describe Saint Louis, MO. But, things are changing. In 2021, the city elected Tishaura Jones as its mayor, the first Black woman to hold that office in the city\u2019s history. <\/p>\n<p>Other Black women like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/learn\/social-justice\/lumen\/marne-madison\">Marne Madison<\/a> are working hard to build the Saint Louis they want to see. Marne is the Executive Director for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.exittogether.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Exit-Now<\/a>, a not-for-profit organization advocating for minorities to get the training and education necessary to enter the cannabis industry.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img alt class=\"wp-image-192982 has-ll lazyload\" width=\"450\" height=\"88\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.png,compress&amp;w=550 550w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.png,compress&amp;w=740 740w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.png,compress&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.png,compress&amp;w=1480 1480w\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Exit-Now is partnering with licensed cannabis vendors and education programs across the country to help break the glass barriers preventing minorities from entering the cannabis industry. <\/p>\n<p>As Madison explains, \u201cthe war on drugs, which led to mass incarcerations in minority communities for non-violent offenses, and a now-legal industry that is too often out-of-reach for these same communities.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"h-aiding-minorities-seeking-justice-and-assistance\">Aiding minorities seeking justice and assistance <\/h2>\n<p>Exit-Now\u2019s fundamental belief is that \u201ccommunities most impacted by the war on drugs should not continue to suffer while large corporations\u2019 profit, and their progress hasn\u2019t been made alone. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img width=\"1024\" height=\"776\" alt=\"off-white graphic with black text that reads &quot;creating inclusion in the cannabis industry through education&quot; along with Exit-now's mission statement in caption\" class=\"wp-image-192979 has-ll lazyload\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo-1.png,compress&amp;w=550 550w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo-1.png,compress&amp;w=740 740w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo-1.png,compress&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo-1.png,compress&amp;w=1480 1480w\"><figcaption>Exit-Now\u2019s mission: \u201cAs a minority ran non-profit, our sole mission is to help communities exit systems of oppression by providing tools that help educate and empower.\u201d <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The organization has brought on Saint Louis University as its main partner to bring this initiative to life. Through the university\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/catalog.slu.edu\/colleges-schools\/professional-studies\/cannabis-certificate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cannabis Science and Operations program<\/a>, Exit and SLU have created the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.exittogether.org\/home-1-1\">Equity-Now scholarship<\/a> to create more diversity and inclusion in the local cannabis workforce.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>SLU and Exit-Now have also created the Round-Up for Equity initiative giving Cannabis patients and consumers the opportunity to round-up purchases at dispensaries to help provide cannabis industry education for minorities.&nbsp; <\/p>\n<p>Each penny collected at dispensaries will go directly to the Equity-Now scholarship fund at SLU. Swade Dispensaries is the first in the state to participate. With five <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/dispensaries\">medical marijuana dispensaries in Missouri<\/a>, Swade is stepping up to play a role that\u2019s been vacant in the state so far.<\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/news\/industry\/higher-education-university-cannabis-degree\" class=\"wp-block-leafly-blocks-leafly-single-inline-block leafly-inline-related-story\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"border border-deep-green-alt border-l-0 border-r-0 my-xl p-md font-bold\">\n<p>Related<\/p>\n<p>Higher education: The top universities with cannabis programs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy agreeing to round up to the nearest dollar in sales, per transaction patients and consumers are assisting in paying the tuition for a student to enroll and successfully complete all semesters of SLU\u2019s Cannabis Science and Operations Certificate,\u201d Madison said.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/CZmjelBLlCn\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\"><\/blockquote>\n<p>Exit-Now is also ready to hold Missouri\u2019s first expungement clinic and workshop on February 27, 2022.<\/p>\n<h2>Why Saint Louis needs help from Exit-Now <\/h2>\n<p>Lexi Wilkinson is a product specialist at Swade and an ambassador for the Round-Up program. She jumped at the chance to work with Exit-Now based on her past experiences. Wilkinson has a Master\u2019s degree in psychology with an emphasis in equity and inclusion. She\u2019s seen the data about how Black and brown communities are impacted by cannabis.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Wilkinson explains, \u201cUltimately, it is crucial that the patients at our store have access to information concerning the future of cannabis and societal health for all people. The information isn\u2019t just for us in the dispensary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Exit-Now is creating a new pipeline for Midwestern minorities in cannabis. Too many have fallen into prison instead of a cannabis education program or a friendly dispensary. <\/p>\n<p>Wilkinson is hopeful that the future of cannabis will be as diverse as its users. \u201cI would like to see people reflected in cannabis companies that represent the diversity of patients and backgrounds at all levels of the cannabis industry, especially [in jobs] at the top.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With changemakers like Marne Madison and Lexi Wilkinson, and institutes like Saint Louis University stepping up, change is inevitable. It\u2019s less about how and more about when. <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<p>Could your city use a program like Exit-Now? Comment below about your ideas on how we can rectify the war on drugs.<\/p>\n<div id=\"author-box\" class=\"p-lg my-xxl bg-white rounded border border-light-grey elevation-low\">\n<div class=\"mb-lg\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.jpg\" alt=\"Ryan Brown's Bio Image\" class=\"lazyload inline-block mr-md rounded-full border border-light-grey\"> <\/p>\n<p>Ryan Brown<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"text-sm\">Ryan is a content creator, copywriter, and entrepreneur from St. Louis living in Chicago. He\u2019s a basketball fanatic, hip-hop enthusiast, indica lover that enjoys binge-watching TV shows and classic movies.<\/p>\n<p> <a class=\"text-sm font-bold underline text-green\" href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/news\/author\/ryan-brown\">View Ryan Brown&#8217;s articles<\/a> <\/div>\n<div class=\"leafly-sailthru-signup p-lg my-xl bg-white rounded elevation-low border border-light-grey\">\n<p class=\"text-xs pt-lg\">By submitting this form, you will be subscribed to news and promotional emails from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\">Leafly<\/a> and you agree to Leafly&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/company\/tos\">Terms of Service<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leafly.com\/company\/privacy-policy\">Privacy Policy<\/a>. You can unsubscribe from Leafly email messages anytime.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> <!-- Chartbeat --> <!-- End Chartbeat -->  <!--\nPerformance optimized by W3 Total Cache. Learn more: https:\/\/www.boldgrid.com\/w3-total-cache\/ Served from: _ @ 2022-02-07 22:02:09 by W3 Total Cache\n--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exit-Now offers cannabis scholarship and expungement resources in Saint Louis, MO | Leafly Link copied to your clipboard Leafly Leafly \u00ae Loading\u2026 Where are you from? noyes Remember me for 30 days. I confirm that this is not a shared device. Darn! You&#8217;re not old enough to use Leafly. Redirecting you to By accessing this site, you accept the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Progressive would not be the first word you would use to describe Saint Louis, MO. But, things are changing. In 2021, the city elected Tishaura Jones as its mayor, the first Black woman to hold&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4126,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marijuana_information"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/exit-now-offers-cannabis-scholarship-and-expungement-resources-in-saint-louis-mo.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4125"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4125\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}