On Tuesday, July 23, Southern University officially planted the first seeds in its program to supply medical marijuana to Louisiana patients.

Southern University becomes only the second institution in the state providing medical marijuana in Louisiana, as well as the only historically black university in the country to be involved in the medical marijuana industry.

“This has been a historic week for the university,” said Ray L. Belton, Southern University System president-chancellor in a statement to the Shreveport Times. “As one of two institutions in the state and the only historically black university in the nation to be actively involved in the medicinal marijuana industry, Southern looks forward to working with our vendor to provide quality medication for the people of this great state. This will not only make yet another mark in how we excel in STEM disciplines but also how we greatly contribute to our communities.”

According to lead researcher and director of Southern University’s Institute for Medicinal Plants, the university is on target for their production benchmarks. “We look forward to having products to the market soon,” Snowden said.