Tulsa Community College is enrolling students in online cannabis workforce certificate programs that emphasize safety and state compliance, with registration for the current session closing Sept. 8.

TCC partnered with California-based cannabis education company Green Flower to offer the courses, KTUL reported. The curriculum covers cultivation, product development, retail sales, medical applications and mandatory state compliance. Industry regulations and workplace safety are described as major components. Students who complete the program gain access to an employer network connecting graduates with companies seeking certified candidates.

The program comes as Oklahoma's cannabis industry faces renewed scrutiny after a fatal explosion at a Sand Springs extraction facility on Aug. 27. Two employees died. Stephen Scott, 28, was found dead at the scene, and Michael Newman, 41, died later at a hospital, according to Cannabis Business Times. The blast at Solos Extract Company LLC in the Morrow Gill Business Park damaged at least 25 nearby businesses and was felt 30 miles away, first responders said.

Ryan Bassham, 35, the facility's owner, faces two counts of first-degree murder in the commission of a felony. Court documents show Bassham did not possess a valid registration with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics or an Oklahoma Medical Marijuana license, Public Radio Tulsa reported. Sand Springs Fire Marshal Michael Nobles inspected the facility in January 2026 and instructed employees to disconnect an extraction booth until reinspection, according to KJRH. After the explosion, investigators found liquid propane and hazardous materials that had not been present during that inspection.

On Aug. 31, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics arrested Bassham again on separate charges tied to an unlicensed facility near Kellyville. Agents seized approximately 1,330 pounds of processed marijuana, 140 pounds of marijuana batter and two firearms, OKC Fox reported. Bassham is held without bond.

Johnny Davis, a Sand Springs plant manager whose family business has operated since 1954, told KTUL on Aug. 30 that the blast knocked out more than a dozen windows and shut down his operations for a day. "We should probably know more about our neighbors around us that are doing things that are this dangerous," Davis said.

The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) said in a Sept. 1 statement, as reported by News On 6, that the deaths resulted from unsafe, illegal operations. OMMA noted that Oklahoma now has fewer than 4,000 licensed cannabis businesses, down from 13,000 at the industry's peak.

Green Flower CEO Max Simon said the cannabis industry is competitive and complex, and that education provides "a proven framework and a road map to be successful."

Because TCC's courses run on eight-week cycles, anyone who misses the Sept. 8 deadline will have to wait until November for the next enrollment period. Interested applicants can sign up through TCC's cannabis education portal.