Boulder's Naropa University to offer psychedelic minor program

• The minor will provide an academic overview of psychedelics, and could lead to a career in the burgeoning industry, Sara Lewis, director of training and research at the Center for Psychedelic Studies, tells us.

Why it matters: It's the latest example of how the small school — it has fewer than 1,200 stude — is positioning itself as the premier institution for psychedelic therapy training.

• Joe Harrison, executive director at the Center for Psychedelic Studies, told us the university's goal is to train the next generation of practitioners.

Context: About 140 people participate each year in the university's certification program in psychedelic-assisted therapy, Lewis said. The eight-month program has been available for clinicians, like nurses and therapists, since March 2022.

• The program provides training in using MDMA, psilocybin and ketamine for therapy. It costs $7,500, and an additional $4,000 to include the MDMA training.

Between the lines: The school prioritizes applicants from Colorado and Oregon — the two states where such therapy is legal — for its certificate program.

What's next: Colorado is currently developing rules for the psychedelic therapy industry, including requirements for obtaining licenses for healing centers, where people will be able to use psychedelics under supervision from a licensed professional.

• Once those rules are set, Naropa plans to provide an additional training program specifically for psilocybin facilitators.