Jason Crosby

I have been at UB just over 19 years.

There are so many fascinating people at UB. If you start a conversation with someone you never know where it may take you.

As a computer programmer, I am a problem solver. When someone comes to me with a problem, it can be difficult at times to isolate what the problem is and what kind of solution I can offer.

It’s always satisfying when you can offer a solution to someone with a problem. It’s also good to be challenged, to have to try something new, and to learn. One project I enjoyed working on was a web based testing program. Everyone was impressed when I could randomize the questions and responses. It was one of the cases where the professor kept asking for things that I didn’t know how to do and I had to figure it out. He and I went on to publish a paper about the program.

Graduate Medical Education supports 800 medical residents in Western New York. Residents aren’t students, they are doctors that work in hospitals year round. The doctors I’ve met here are some of the most caring and dedicated people I’ve ever known.

When we were on the south campus, I would go to the gym, Clark Hall, every day at lunch and I would get twice as much done when I came back. It’s good to get away from something you’ve been working on all morning and can often lead to solutions.

I like to keep active, biking, running, hiking, and whatever else. I mostly gave up using my car when the pandemic lock down started in March and have been biking or running almost everywhere since then. I’ve been a volunteer with the Boy Scouts for a while, working on both the unit and council level helping to plan many events, sometimes for hundreds of people. Most people don’t realize that the real takeaway from scouting are leadership skills. Leadership skills are something that are applicable every day, throughout life. It is amazing to see young people develop into good leaders and good leaders are something we are in need of today.

Peanut butter. Every day. Sometimes multiple times. A peanut butter sandwich with honey and wheat germ is great before any endurance event. Other than that, I eat a lot of pasta.

I’ve always wanted to bike across the country, and I’d like to finish climbing the Adirondack 46 high peaks. I have a friend who is planning to backpack the Appalachian Trail; I’d definitely be in for that. I don’t like sitting for a long time so driving and flying are kind of dreadful to me. However, adventure really isn’t about traveling. It’s about pushing yourself outside your comfort zone, and that’s something that can happen every day.

When participating in different activities, hiking, biking, backpacking, snowshoeing, or anything else, in moments of doubt I’ve been known to tell people that it’s not an adventure until you think, “this sucks, I hate it, and I’m never doing it again.” I truly believe that because then it’s an adventure of the spirit; to keep going when you want to stop or you’re tired and aching. Some people believe me too! After pulling through something difficult, no one has ever come back to tell me it’s wrong or they regretted it. It’s a real feeling of accomplishment when you’ve had doubts and you finish something difficult. In addition, I have two dogs, Sasha who’s almost 12; and Korbyn, who’s just over two and a half. I am not sure what kind they are as they were both adopted from the SPCA but I like to say they are a husky/shepherd mix.