🔒Cheryl Chase family donates $1.5M to UConn Health, law school

A prominent Hartford business family has donated $1.5 million to the University of Connecticut to support emergency care improvements at UConn Health and technology upgrades at the UConn School of Law. The gift from Cheryl Chase, a 1978 UConn law school graduate; her husband, former Connecticut judge Stuart Bear; and their family will establish the Chase-Bear-Dyer Advanced Triage Unit at UConn Health and the Chase-Bear-Dyer Family Classroom at the law school. At UConn Health's Farmington campus, the donation enabled renovations to the emergency department that address growing patient volumes and demand for emergency services. The project added seven specialized evaluation bays for so-called "vertical patients" — individuals who can be safely assessed in chairs or recliners rather than hospital beds. Hospital officials said the new advanced triage unit will increase surge capacity, allowing medical staff to evaluate patients more quickly and prioritize care during periods of high demand. "Emergency medicine depends on both skilled providers and spaces equipped to support fast, effective decision-making," UConn Health CEO Dr. Andrew Agwunobi said in a statement. The gift also establishes an endowment at the UConn School of Law that will provide funding for classroom technology, practice courtrooms, library resources and artificial intelligence-related initiatives. According to the university, endowment proceeds will support technology infrastructure across the Hartford campus, including AI software and instructors for technology- and AI-focused courses. In recognition of the donation, a first-floor classroom in Cheryl A. Chase Hall will be renamed the Chase-Bear-Dyer Family Classroom. The building was named after the Chase family following a major gift in 2005. School of Law Dean Eboni Nelson said the funding will help modernize teaching spaces and strengthen the school's ability to prepare students for a legal profession increasingly shaped by technology. The donation continues a long history of support for UConn by the Chase family, which has funded scholarships and endowed faculty positions and pediatric medicine initiatives. Cheryl Chase serves as vice chair of the UConn Health Center Board of Directors and previously served on the UConn School of Law Foundation Board and Advisory Council. Chase is principal, co-president and general counsel of Hartford-based Chase Enterprises, an investment and real estate firm founded by her father, developer David Chase. Bear had a long legal career, including serving as a Connecticut Superior Court and Connecticut Appellate Court judge.