Jason Mazeski
Adult Education, M.S. (2017)
Employment: Police Officer, New York City Police Department Office of Research and Evaluation
Adjunct Assistant Professor, New York City College of Technology
The Buffalo State School of Education strives to develop educators who genuinely care about the students they teach and want to make a positive impact on the world. These ideals perfectly describe those of Dr. Jason W. Mazeski.
Graduating in 2017 with an M.S. in Adult Education, Mazeski is a sterling example of Buffalo State’s capacity to broaden perspectives through education. He is someone who has not only benefited from an education, but also seeks to use his knowledge to make positive changes within the communities and organizations he cares about.
“I’ve taken so much of my motivation from past and present education professionals. I’ve accomplished much of what I have academically because of them. I’d say what motivates me is to provide the same thing for someone else. To be that voice or person that makes someone change the way they see the world or view their education. To inspire someone to pursue a different career, degree, or perspective. I’m eternally grateful for that gift, and I’d love to be able to provide it to someone else.”
Mazeski resides in Campbell Hall, NY and works with both the New York City Police Department as a Police Officer assigned to the Office of Research and Evaluation, and the New York City College of Technology as an Adjunct Assistant Professor.
Working as a police officer for seventeen years, his reason for choosing the profession has shifted with time. Upon entering, he wanted to help the people of his community, but with years of experience, education, and questioning norms, he saw that he needed to expand upon his original motivation.
“While serving the community will always be a priority, helping the police as individuals, organizations, and culture to do better is my primary love now. There’s so much that can be done within policing that applies to adult education theory and practice,” he said.
Through his work with the NYPD, Mazeski brings a teaching philosophy that is closely intertwined with transformative and experiential learning. He seeks to present an environment in which participants are open and willing to absorb new knowledge while questioning existing norms and understanding.
“It really doesn’t matter what the subject matter is, finding personal experience that can help with learning and then applying that to change is what’s important in education. That change doesn’t always have to be existential…but it’s the foundation of personal growth.”
Mazeski finds himself in an important position, especially due to the renewed push for police reform throughout the country and world since 2020. He believes in the power of education and its role as a positive force for change for both the officers and organization. In his efforts to help the police as individuals, an organization, and a culture he is interested in how the personal development of police officers can help with creating a fairer and more just system.
“Indoctrination of the police into a ‘fraternity’ is waning; being replaced with critical thinking workshops, communication courses, and professional development to highlight the existence of life beyond “the job,” he said. “Opening the world up to someone who honestly believes they have little value outside of policing, that’s my current passion.”
Mazeski’s time at Buffalo State University played an important role in informing this work as an educator within the NYPD. His program was exclusively online, but the interactions he had with his fellow students felt as if he was on campus in person. The University helped him prepare for the practical application of his daily duties while working, as well as his terminal degree. His collegiate work not only introduced him to different theories that broadened his perspective, but how those theories can apply to real life across formal, non-formal, and informal environments.
A course that Mazeski found especially meaningful was Diversity Issues in Adult Education and Training. Pushing him to question his preconceived values and norms, the course helped him gain a broader perspective of diversification and how the structure of a learning curriculum can add to an ever-present bias if not designed to address these important cultural issues.
“The course was a turning point in personal and professional growth for me. Acknowledging very blatant diversity issues with existing curriculum and understanding the reason I didn’t notice them before was because of some type of implicit bias. The course definitely helped me reframe my outlook on adult education.”
Behind every great student is a caring and engaged teacher, and Mazeski credits the faculty and staff at Buffalo State for helping him prepare for his terminal degree.
“I don’t think I would have made it through the program without the ability to stay in touch with a few of my professors here at Buffalo State. Just having the emotional support from the connections we had made was impactful.”
Beyond working towards his terminal degree, he credits the entire faculty in the adult education program for inspiring him.
“Their passion for adult education and knowledge about not only theoretical underpinnings; but the application of those theories, really ignited my passion. The faculty was absolutely the number one reason I decided to move onto a doctorate program after my studies at Buffalo State.”
In developing newfound perspectives and opinions through his education at Buffalo State and career in the NYPD, Mazeski has found that he views things differently both personally and professionally which has created some friction in his relationships.
“Friends, family, co-workers often find my perspectives and viewpoints polarizing at times. Though most of them are amicable to discourse, a few have since left my life because of these shifts. That’s my biggest challenge at the moment, trying to balance what seems to be two diametrically opposing worlds, both for which I find myself occupying.”
As for advice to future educators, Mazeski says: “Embrace the context in which you exist at the present moment. I think so much is lost in context. Experience, teaching, learning, transformation…it all revolves around context. If you, the teacher, leverage your power to further a certain agenda… you are simultaneously stifling the learning and experience of others. Use your voice as a teacher to help students learn critical thinking, active listening, and the ability to engage in reasonable discourse with which you disagree”
While being accomplished in his field and actively engaged in the critical work of an educator, Mazeski believes in a spectrum of success, not being able to easily define it as one specific act or landmark.
“How does one define success? Promotions? Awards? Accolades? Most days I can go home at night and rest easy because I know I’ve done the best I can do. My effort goes towards what is important to me, and with that effort comes success that manifests in many forms. I’m not sure if I’ve met success yet…but I’ll keep trying, and I’ll let you know when I get there!”
Looking to the future, Mazeski will continue to push adult education theory and practice within the NYPD for the next few years until he reaches his service retirement. Once retired, he hopes to make a full-time shift over to academia and consulting.
“Your students are not a vessel to fill with knowledge, they are not an empty pot with which you decide what to plant and how to cultivate it. Your students, no matter child or adult, are already wonderful plants indeed. They will live on without your intervention. No, you are the facilitator of growth. You can stand back and watch, or you can make the conditions right for your students to flourish.”
Read May 27, 2026 Buffalo State news article about Jason Mazeski
Posted December 8, 2023 by Jarrett Whipple, SEP Graduate Assistant