Marijuana Pepsi Vandyck has spent her life embracing a name that has drawn attention, often unwanted, and most always raising eyebrows.

Marijuana was given the name by her mother who was convinced it would provide notoriety and "take her around the world." What the name did was put her in the position of having to answer a million questions and fend off judgment.

Her parents were of the post-Woodstock era when cannabis was coming into its own across the country. "And they would cool off with a Pepsi," Marijuana's aunt, Mayetta Jackson told the Journal-Sentinel. "I thought it was crazy, but they were such fun-loving people that it suited them." Marijuana's sisters have relatively common names, Kimberly and Robin.

Despite the challenges, Marijuana Pepsi says she’s proud of her name and never considered changing it, wrote the New York Post. Until she was about 10 years old, she thought “Marijuana was just a beautiful name.” But when she moved to a new city, she became keenly aware that her name was different.

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"When people find out my name, they ask my nickname instead. I tell them if calling me Marijuana isn't comfortable, they can call me Dr. Vandyck."

Indeed, Marijuana, who married Fredrick Vandyck in 2017, earned a Ph.D. in higher education leadership from Cardinal Stritch University in 2019. Her dissertation topic was "Black Names in White Classrooms: Teacher Behaviors and Student Perceptions," which looked at the effects of unique names on the educational experiences of Black students.

Her research found that students with distinctly Black names were subject to disrespect, stereotypes and low academic and behavioral expectations. Marijuana said her own name elicited the strongest reactions from white teachers.

“A lot of other people were thinking [my mom] was smoking marijuana and drinking Pepsi,” she told NPR, neither of which was the case. “In the black community, we’re used to having names that are more cultural.”

Marijuana works at the Community College of Baltimore County, where she uses her platform to promote positive educational experiences and challenge societal norms around identity and expectations. She is also the founder and executive director of Action As Empowerment Consulting & Solutions, LLC.

People often assume, again wrongly, that she consumes weed or drinks a lot of Pepsi. In fact, she does neither and never has.

And when weed companies come calling with offers for promotional opportunities, she declines.

"I do get hit up by marijuana companies, but I wouldn't do anything with them unless it was centered around education,” Marijuana Pepsi said.

Photo: Courtesy Action As Empowerment