Medical marijuana became legal in Kentucky at the start of 2025, but colleges in Louisville and around the commonwealth are taking a stance against allowing it on campus.
Multiple Kentucky universities, including the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky, told The Courier Journal they will not allow the prescribed medicine on campus. While some schools didn’t provide a reasoning behind the policy, experts in the marijuana industry say discrepancies between state and federal law are to blame.
Marijuana remains illegal on the federal level and is classified as a Schedule I drug, putting it in the same category as heroin and LSD. The Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act, an amendment of the Higher Education Act, requires higher education institutions that receive federal funding to enact policies banning illicit drugs on campus.
Since virtually all colleges receive federal funding in the form of financial aid, grants and scholarships, colleges are bound to abide by federal laws prohibiting illegal drugs on college campuses — regardless of state legislation, said Max Simon, CEO of the cannabis education company Green Flower.
“Most schools are just kind of not willing to wade into the waters of riskiness, because they would be actively going against federal law to do some of these things,” Simon said.
Marijuana is legalized for either medical or recreational use in the majority of U.S. states. Reconciling the disparities between federal and state marijuana laws would be a sensible course of action, Simon said, but it hasn’t been a priority for lawmakers.
“Quite frankly, almost every state in the country that has any form of legalization is in conflict with federal law right now, and that doesn’t make any sense,” Simon said.
Under the Joe Biden administration in 2024, the Department of Justice recommended reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III drug — a placement that would keep the drug illegal but ease federal restrictions, Simon noted. But that process has hit snags that have delayed hearings for evaluating the proposal.
For Kentucky college students with medical marijuana prescriptions, Simon said possession and usage on campus will likely be out of the question without federal action.
See what Louisville and Kentucky colleges said about their medical marijuana policies below.
The University of Louisville’s code of conduct says medical marijuana is prohibited on campus or at university-sponsored events.
University of Kentucky spokesperson Jay Blanton said medical marijuana is not allowed on campus. However, he acknowledged its recent legalization impacts stakeholders across campus, adding the university is evaluating the impacts of potential policy changes.
“At UK, we have multiple populations that could be impacted by any changes in policy on this issue — students, faculty, staff and patients in our health care enterprise. Given those dynamics, we are taking time with stakeholders across campus to evaluate the issue and what impacts any changes would have with respect to our community,” Blanton said in a statement.
Bellarmine University prohibits the use of medical marijuana on campus, spokesperson Jason Cissell said in an email.
“If a student has a prescription, they can discuss options with our student affairs team, but that would not include use on campus,” he said in an emailed statement.
Contact reporter Killian Baarlaer at kbaarlaer@gannett.com or @bkillian72 on X.
Kentucky colleges ban medical marijuana on campus despite recent legalization – Courier Journal
