Connected Joins Green Flower and Newly-Founded GF Institute to Launch Professional Credentials

VENTURA, Calif. and SACRAMENTO, Calif., Sept. 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Green Flower announced that Connected is joining newly-established GF Institute (GFI) as a Steering Committee Founding Member. Senior Director of Retail and Distribution Lisa Young-Willhoite will represent Connected on the inaugural GFI Steering Committee advisory board.

"Connected is the brand for cannasseurs who appreciate best-in-class genetics and the highest-quality flower. We empower our members to be passionate go-getters who have both great ideas and the drive to make them a reality," said Young-Willhoite. "Our culture thrives on enabling every individual to be curious about their work and to continually seek out opportunities to improve their knowledge and further develop their skills, so it was a natural decision to become Founding Members of GF Institute, where the logical conclusion to standardized training and onboarding programs results in higher quality talent, better service to customers and patients, and a safer, more consistent product experience."

GFI is launching with 3 credentials, available today, that focus specifically on the largest sectors of people growth in the cannabis industry:

• Dispensary Associate Certificate (DAC)
• Cultivation Technician Certificate (CTC)
• Manufacturing Agent Certificate (MAC)

Each credential program takes 12-16 hours to complete, is available 100% online, and consists of 2 units approved by GFI's Steering Committee advisory group, comprised of more than 30 leading cannabis employers operating in the industry today. Steering Committee Founding Members of GF Institute provide independent oversight to the credentials' development, validate the syllabi and learning objectives against real-world application requirements, and ultimately approve that the final course assessment for each credential program adequately tests the defined curriculum.

"Connected's simple but powerful mission—to breed, grow and sell the best cannabis in the world—makes them a great fit to be Green Flower Institute Founding Member," said Max Simon, CEO and Co-Founder of Green Flower. "GFI will address many of the issues in the cannabis workforce and help employers like Connected train and develop their employees in the necessary skills, knowledge, and credibility they need to succeed."

On successful completion of any single GFI credential program, learners are automatically granted individual membership in GF Institute. GFI will offer members of this post-graduate community voluntary continuing education content, networking and career development opportunities, and more.

GF Institute is now accepting applications for new Founding Members through December 31, 2021, by offering a limited-time bonus for brands who act soon: Founding Member brands are granted access to deploy these professional credentials across their organization as part of the standard licensing fee for Green Flower's enterprise employee learning and development platform with no extra cost.

For more information about GF Institute or the GFI credential program, please visit gfinstitute.org and download the complete program documentation, including course syllabi and answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs).

About Green Flower:
Founded in 2014, Green Flower is the industry leader in cannabis education, empowering thousands of consumers, regulators, and professionals with the knowledge they need to succeed in the emerging cannabis industry today.

Green Flower's content and technology platform powers the cannabis programs of top universities and colleges across the country, provides customized learning and compliance solutions for cannabis businesses of all sizes, and equips individuals with the skills and credentials necessary to make an impact in the modern cannabis industry.

About Connected:
11 years from our humble beginnings as the founders of Fruitridge Health & Wellness in Sacramento, Connected now maintains a portfolio of proprietary top-shelf cannabis genetics cultivated in state-of-the-art grow facilities. We are proud to be the largest grower of premium flower in California. 

With three retail doors in California, recent expansion into Arizona and national expansion plans in motion, we operate one of the fastest growing, vertically integrated cannabis companies in the country.  

Our mission has remained the same since day one: To breed, grow and sell the best cannabis in the world.  This commitment to deliver at the absolute pinnacle comes to life in the standards we hold our product, our people, and our partners to every day. 

Proprietary genetics cultivated with cutting-edge technology and over 100 years of combined plant cultivation experience has earned our flower the highest wholesale price in any major legal market. Our continued curiosity can be traced back to an early obsession with R&D that poured resources into what is now one of the most advanced cannabis breeding programs in the world.

In 2017, we welcomed Alien Labs to the Connected family; a partnership built on the foundation of like-minded quality standards and the desire to raise those standards across the industry.

Today, a new emphasis on elevated experiences will ride in tandem with geographical and menu expansion on the fast paced and thrilling road ahead for the entire Connected family of brands.

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SOURCE Green Flower