Friday Field Trips: Lifted Spirit

 

Students who take Oaksterdam’s Live Semester courses get various networking and event opportunities, including virtual field trips. 

The tours take students through a variety of facilities in the cannabis industry, led by experts in the field. 

This month, we’ve partnered with OU Alumni and Horticulture Faculty Oscar Burrola to feature his microbusiness, Lifted Spirit Collective.

On Dec. 3, Burrola will walk students through his 10,000-square-foot facility in Contra Costa County, Calif., which includes living soil cultivation, solventless extraction, and wholesale distribution. 

Head shot of Oscar Burrola

Oscar Burrola, Founder of Lifted Spirit Collective

On the Tour

Burrola will describe grow methodologies, equipment, and how plants progress from clone to dried and cured flower. He’ll then take students into the extraction room, where LSC uses the bubble bag technique, hand washing the product with ice water.

Burrola attended Oaksterdam as a student before becoming an OU instructor and opening Lifted Spirit Collective to serve medical patients in 2016. He has hosted several virtual field trips as a way to give back. 

“I hope it’s exciting for students to see the plants, and that it gives a little extra level of motivation,” he says. “We can answer underlying questions they might be confused about and just give them a better understanding of how things work and how to go about getting into the industry.”

Burrola is a staunch Oaksterdam supporter, to the point that three of his four employees are OU alumni. 

“They all have a good basic understanding of plant knowledge which is nice,” he says. “You don’t have to explain very much to students who have gone through Oaksterdam.”

Photo of Lifted Spirit Grow Room

Lifted Spirit Collective grow facility.

What is a Virtual Field Trip? 

A virtual field trip is an extracurricular activity offered to students and alumni from our certification programs. A field trip typically consists of a virtual facility tour and a Q&A session with the host, moderated by Oaksterdam staff. 

Facility tours help students develop their understanding of legal, compliant cannabis businesses. Tours also allow students to see how the concepts they study in their programs apply in real life. 

“We hope to show students a diverse range of businesses while showcasing industry best practices at different scales,” says Oaksterdam Lead Facilitator Elizabeth Bowen, who organizes the field trips.

Tours are held in Zoom by the Oaksterdam Facilitation Department. A facilitator will be present throughout the event to assist the host with Q&A.  Students may ask various questions ranging from facility design and operations to industry trends, careers, and more.

Photo of grow facility

Lifted Spirit Collective

Why host a virtual tour?

By hosting a virtual tour, you are helping to educate the next generation of cannabis legislators and entrepreneurs.  

“Virtual tours provide a window for people from all backgrounds and locations to see what a developed and legal cannabis industry looks like,” Bowen says. “It is a unique opportunity to establish your business as the industry standard, introduce students to your values and philosophy, and promote your brand.”  

Who can host an Oaksterdam Field Trip?

  • Legal and compliant cannabis-related businesses such as cultivation operations, dispensaries, ancillary services, and more. 
  • A business focused on compliance that’s willing to visually show and tell about its facilities and non-proprietary information with our students at no cost. 

What you get from us:

  • Free exposure to hundreds of cannabis enthusiasts, potential employees, regulators, etc.
  • We host the video call and provide a virtual event facilitator to moderate.
  • We record the trip, edit the recording and provide you with a copy for use.
  • We post a copy of the recording on our video gallery for students to view in perpetuity (thousands of potential views).
  • Social media shout out on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

If you are a business wishing to host a virtual field trip or alumni who would like to attend, contact OU Lead Facilitator Elizabeth Bowen at [email protected] or call us at (510) 251-1544. Alumni are welcome to reach out to Elizabeth to join virtual field trips. 

Learn more about Oscar’s business at LiftedspiritCollective.com.

 

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