James Robert Crotty

Good friend of my dad (Wes Weber) in the sixties and early seventies. Condolences to the family.

I knew Jim for 50 years, starting at Bucknell. I was among those organizing a pass-fail grading option there for students, which despite Jim´s intense academic discipline, he, unlike many of the other faculty members, voted with us in solidarity. I also will never forget that at graduation, he sought out my father, a longtime mail carrier, to offer his congratulations of getting his kid through college. Jim was the reason I moved to Massachusetts to work for the UMass student government...

Jim was a legend. A warm, witty, brilliant giant. Deeply shaped how I see and think about the world. He will be sorely missed and never forgotten.

I will always remember Jim's lecture about Hyman Minsky's work on the "Ponzi Scheme" back in the early 1980s when I was a grad student at UMass - along with Jim's good humor and guitar playing. He was a generous spirit, an insightful scholar, and a dedicated teacher.

Dr. Crotty was the best professor I've ever had, even though it was in a large lecture hall. He had the ability to make Economics fun and understandable. I am so grateful to him.