The Impact of Marijuana Legalization on Youth & the Need for State Legislation on Marijuana-Specific Instruction in K–12 Schools

State legalization of marijuana is a divisive and polarizing issue that has resulted in fragmentation between governments and citizens. Contrary to federal law, voters in many states have approved ballot initiatives legalizing the sale of marijuana to adults for their recreational use. This Article argues that any state that legalizes marijuana has a concomitant duty to amend its K–12 public school instructional statutes to provide for substantial marijuana education. No state has yet enacted such legislation even though current alternative educational methods fail to provide sufficient safeguards. Accordingly, this Article proposes new statutory remedies that could bridge the gap between partisan opponents, cure a legal deficiency that has the potential to cause irreparable harm to children, and provide a model for future states that legalize marijuana