Five Northern Michigan University alumni who have taken diverse academic paths to find success in the cannabis industry will participate in a “Wildcats in the Weeds” panel discussion at the Great Lakes Cannabis Collaboration Conference at NMU on Tuesday, April 23. They commented in advance on how NMU prepared them for their careers.
The alumni panelists are: Jeremy Johnson, partnership manager at AlpineIQ; Mitch Rusch, owner of Frosty Trees; Taylor Busch-Anderson, marketing director at Higher Love; Kieran Connolly-Ng, senior project manager at Dutchie; and Hailey Varney from Cambium Analytica.
Johnson, a 2011 communication studies alumnus, is a digital marketing professional who has fully transitioned into the cannabis space after a wide range of projects. He helped lead the e-commerce and digital strategies for two of Michigan's highest-volume dispensaries. Johnson is now helping to educate cannabis retailers on how to use e-commerce and digital marketing tools to increase brand awareness, grow web traffic, and increase sales in the fastest-growing channel for the cannabis industry.
“There was no cannabis program when I attended and the rules on campus were obviously prohibitive,” he said. “In that sense, I would say perhaps the biggest impact of my college experience in general is that it showed me the demand for the product, and it prepared me for the gray aspects of rules and regulations across our industry. I also learned the value of personal connections and relationships through my time at NMU, which has consistently been one of the most valuable parts of my NMU. My time in the communications office was particularly influential in that in taught me ‘how to make things happen.'”
Rusch earned a bachelor's degree in management in 2018. He began cultivating cannabis as a medical caregiver in 2013 before establishing his own cannabis cultivation company for the Michigan recreational market.
“NMU's adventurous spirit sculpted my entrepreneurial path, fostering readiness for the cannabis industry's dynamic landscape,” he said. “From exploring Northern Michigan's wild terrain to embracing innovative business concepts, NMU sparked the fire of entrepreneurship within me. It's where adventure met ambition, laying the groundwork for success in business/cultivation within the thriving cannabis industry.”
Busch-Anderson, who also majored in communications, graduated in 2015 with a bachelor's degree and appeared in several NMU theater productions. She spent three years with the Michigan Chamber of Commerce in Lansing before joining Higher Love about a year ago. While new to the cannabis industry, she has jumped into the regulatory challenges and creative opportunities.
“I've always been proud that I chose to take advantage of all NMU has to offer,” she said. “Having an educational opportunity like Northern in my back yard made it a convenient choice, but the programs and atmosphere made it the right choice. I've been able to cultivate relationships, a professional network and an understanding of the culture and economy.
“Campus is so intertwined in the city of Marquette that you become immersed in the culture of the U.P by default. It naturally fosters a deeper appreciation for local support and community foundation. Higher Love and the budding cannabis industry in general is bringing such economic prosperity to the U.P., I am beyond thrilled to be involved and be an advocate for this movement. All Yoopers know, the moment you leave the U.P. you start scheming on how to get back. With the many economic opportunities that the cannabis industry is providing, Wildcats now have another road to pursue.”
After graduating from NMU in 2009 with a degree in marketing, Connolly-Ng moved to Oregon, where he worked as a medical cannabis grower and business consultant, engaging with county and state officials to shape Oregon's emerging recreational cannabis rules and policies. His experience creating state policy led to careers in Oregon's recreational cannabis industry including: dispensary management, cannabis processing, extraction, and edible production. In 2019, Connolly-Ng transitioned into cannabis tech and took an early position managing eCommerce product content at Dutchie, where he continues to help cannabis brands take control of their online presence.
“During my time at NMU I studied business with a focus on marketing and also kept a close eye on the existing legacy cannabis market and how it operated,” he said. “I always understood that cannabis was just a business like any other and to be successful in it, you need to understand as much as possible about your customers and the markets that you choose to operate in. NMU and the School of Business did an excellent job of preparing me with the tools I needed to be successful in the corporate world, which thankfully for me now includes cannabis."
Varney is a 2021 graduate of NMU's medicinal plant chemistry program. In May of 2022, she began working for Cambium Analytica, a bioanalytical laboratory in Traverse City specializing in product development and analytical testing for natural products including foods, dietary supplements, botanical products and natural pharmaceuticals, including cannabis. She currently serves as its lead LC/DAD chemist.
"I lead a team performing several different quantitative analyses of active ingredients in cannabis products as well as an array of organic, nutraceutical and dietary products," Varney said. "This is where I found my passion for instrumentation and separation chemistry, especially as it applies to natural products. I learn something new every single day in my position and enjoy getting to be at the forefront of an evolutionary industry from a scientific perspective."
View the panel topics and plenary speakers, along with general information on the Great Lakes Cannabis Collaboration Conference, here.