Is CBD Flower Legal on College Campuses?
You’re a legal adult, and there are no federal laws restricting the sale of CBD-rich hemp flowers as long as they contain less than 0.3% THC. Why is it, then, that so many public and private universities have such positively backward policies regarding student use of CBD flower?
In this guide, unravel the legal complexities surrounding using CBD flower on college campuses. Then, learn more about the impressive benefits of CBD flower that are making college students smoke this alternative to weed despite the policies their schools have put in place.
Can I smoke CBD on a college campus?
From a federal and state perspective, there is usually no issue with smoking CBD flower on a college campus. As per the 2018 Farm Bill, the federal government has deemed that Cannabis sativa products containing less than 0.3% delta 9 THC are industrial hemp, a legal category also containing hemp seed oil and hemp T-shirts.
Only a precious few states, furthermore, have outright banned CBD flower, making it even more unlikely that any external authority has determined that CBD flower is banned on your college campus. If it has been indicated to you that smoking CBD flower is not acceptable at your university, therefore, an internal campus policy is most likely to blame.
Federal cannabis law
Under federal law, “marijuana” is a Schedule I illegal drug, meaning that it carries the highest possible penalties and is believed to offer no medical value. Due to the changes made by the 2018 Farm Bill however, the term “marijuana” now usually only applies to cannabis products with more than 0.3% THC. As a result, the federal government is very unlikely to have a problem with you smoking CBD on campus.
State CBD flower laws
As of 2022, only Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, and Utah have passed legislation restricting the sale of CBD flower in one way or another. In most cases, these laws are not outright bans, and their constitutional legality is questionable. If you attend college in any of the states listed above, however, there’s a slim likelihood that you may be denied the right to smoke CBD flower based on state-specific policies.
College policies
Certain colleges and universities have gone out of their way to restrict the use of CBD flower among students. Some institutions of higher learning have anti-marijuana policies that can be construed to apply to CBD flower as well, and others — such as Colorado State University — have set rather bizarre policies in place restricting CBD flower use to hemp grown within the state.
Before using CBD flower, take some time to consult with your college’s policies. Even if you aren’t breaking any state or federal laws, universities can still subject you to internal punitive measures if you violate their policies, potentially including expulsion.
Does CBD flower help college students?
CBD flower certainly seems to have the potential to help college students in various areas of life, making it all the more ludicrous that these legal adults are so commonly unable to make the decision to smoke or vape hemp buds. With CBD flower, you can explore sides of cannabis you never knew existed — sides that might simultaneously be more conducive to your studies and less likely to concern your parents.
CBD doesn’t appear to get in the way of your ability to learn, after all, and it doesn’t get you high. When you write home to your parents, you can proudly say you didn’t smoke any weed as long as the only type of cannabis you smoked during the semester was CBD flower.
Benefits of CBD flower for college students
We can think of three specific ways that CBD flower can help college students who live or study on campus:
— Studying
All the studying you need to do as a college student can overburden you with stress and anxiety. Some students use CBD flower as a study aid — when you’re overwhelmed with the adrenaline and caffeine you need to make your deadlines, CBD flower can put the brakes on things enough to make you stop thinking about your classes tomorrow while you’re still trying to read the text for tonight’s assignment.
— Socializing
As a college student, CBD flower won’t get you high, but it might help you break the ice to a certain degree. Studies have been conducted into the potential benefits of CBD for anxiety, and countless individuals have reported that CBD flower helped them feel more relaxed, less preoccupied, and better able to give other human beings their full time and attention.
— Staying sober
Everyone around you is smoking weed, but you want to abstain. You have your reasons, which no one should question. CBD flower gives you an out that allows you to stay sober while still relaxing and mingling with the crowd. Consider CBD flower your “get-out-of-weed-free card.”
Smoking CBD flower in college: The bottom line
Students have gotten away with smoking weed in college for more than half a century. Before that, they found ways to hide even the acrid smell of tobacco in college dormitories. Since you’re smoking something that doesn’t even get you high or stink up the drapes, there shouldn’t honestly be any issue with smoking CBD flower on college campuses.
Depending on the school you’ve chosen to be your future alma mater, however, you might face particular obstacles and dangers along the way. While it’s true the decisions you’re making now will affect you for the rest of your life, it’s also true that college is about exploring freedom — will you allow a school’s outdated policies to keep you from experiencing everything CBD flower has to offer?
CBD flower on campus FAQ
Learn more about the ups and downs of smoking CBD flower on campus below:
1. How can I smoke CBD in my dorm room without getting caught?
If you want to smoke CBD flower but you can’t leave your dorm, start by taking all the usual precautions. Place a towel at the base of the door leading to the hallway, or even more ideally, seal all the edges of the door with tape.
Then, turn on any exhaust fans that may be in the room or adjacent bathrooms. Open all the windows, and sit near one of them. If you have a floor or desk fan, plug it in, and place it around six feet away from you pointing at the window.
Smoke your CBD buds right by the window, and allow the air current from the fan to blow any residual smoke emitting from the bowl out the window. Of course, also blow your exhalation out the window forcefully enough to ensure the room won’t fill with smoke. With these precautions taken, you should be able to enjoy a CBD flower smoking session in your dorm room entirely undisturbed.
2. Can I vape CBD in my dorm room?
Though your college’s policies might not allow it, it’s certainly better to vape in your dorm room than it is to smoke CBD flower. Vapor is far harder to detect than smoke since any visible traces disappear within seconds and there aren’t any lasting aromas.
Simply make sure your room’s windows are open, and turn on the fan in your bathroom. In most cases, it should be sufficient to blow your vape hits into the bathroom fan — something you shouldn’t try with smoke since too much aroma would be left behind.
3. Do drug dogs smell CBD flower?
On some college campuses, drug-sniffing dogs are used to detect illicit drug use. Since CBD flower smells exactly like marijuana, it might set off any drug-sniffing canines patrolling your dorm. While the measures you’ve taken to prevent the aroma of cannabis from leaving your dorm room might be sufficient against human noses, don’t count on fooling the sense of smell of a properly trained drug dog.
4. Does CBD flower affect a drug test?
Yes, smoking CBD flower has the potential to make you fail a drug test due to the small amount of THC naturally contained in CBD-rich hemp buds. It’s generally necessary to smoke quite a bit of CBD flower over a short period of time, however, to run even the slightest risk of showing a false positive for THC on a drug test.
5. How long is CBD detectable in urine?
While CBD is not usually tested for in urinalysis, the tiny concentrations of THC contained in CBD products can remain detectable in your urine for anywhere from 3-30 days depending on your frequency of use. Heavy CBD users, for instance, may test positive for a full 30 days after using their last CBD product, while intermittent users may boast entirely THC-free systems after only 3-7 days.
6. Does the NCAA test for cannabinoids?
In 2022, the NCAA revised its policy on cannabinoids to increase the amount of THC that can be detectable in a player’s system from 35ng/ml to 150ng/ml. As a result, the amount of THC that CBD flower deposits in an average user’s system is no longer likely to exceed the NCAA’s testing threshold.
