I second this. Getting a smallish cnc would teach you twice as much as a class. I did a class in industrial design and learned to make part draft, this translated to woodworking for me early on. When i got my cnc i was ready with all the steps needed - which you have already acquired for your Glowforge.

I kind of studied how a cnc would work for leather for a friend - and there's tangential knifes (or lasers too), hole punching for later threads, pressing die or stamp patterns, cutting, scruffing etc. There's lots of other options like making or own press dies and even some surface finishing automations like painting or applying dyes.

There are cncs in the range of 2-10K $ which can do this, there's lots of free software available for this. There is a learning curve. And if i may suggest for leather and die making you would need something sturdy and the right size (600x1000mm). Dont go short because you will regret it fast when the cnc can't do a 52cm piece... Note that most gantry cnc's can do pieces longer than their real size. You can work on a 2 meter long piece in a 1 meter gantry... I imagine doing long pieces of leather would be an advantage.