Cannabis College Closes Due to Owner's Memory Lapse

Denver’s Greenway University—America's first state-certified, approved and regulated medical marijuana school, is no longer approved. Or regulated. The institution—which was founded in California in 2009 and set up operations in Colorado and New Jersey—has offered various classes for pot fanatics, ranging from how to operate a medical marijuana center to how to properly cultivate a growing concern. But the Colorado Department of Higher Education Division of Private Occupational Schools—which accredited Greenway Denver just a year ago—has now suspended the cannabis academy's license, due to a slip by owner Gus Escamilla when completing his application to operate. When asked if he had ever been convicted, pleaded to a felony or had charges pending, Escamilla wrote “No.” But in 2000 he had pleaded guilty to felony grand theft by embezzlement. Escamilla admitted his wrongdoing: “My responsibility as a leader is I have to take responsibility, and I’m willing to do that,“ he told 7NEWS, explaining that he was "under the impression" his mail fraud conviction had been "expunged." The school plans to appeal to the state to re-open, but for now the stoner students will have to wait.