Bruce Eichner gifts $500,000 to UC Law
Alumnus creates workforce housing fellowship
A $500,000 gift from Bruce Eichner, JD ’69, to the University of Cincinnati College of Law will establish the Ian Bruce Eichner Research Fellowship in Workforce Housing Policy Fund. The Eichner Fellowship will be a three-year program aimed at improving research, advocacy, development, and access to workforce housing. This visiting legal scholar will be based in the Nathaniel R. Jones Center for Race, Gender, and Social Justice at UC Law.
Bruce Eichner, JD ’69.
The term workforce housing applies to housing that is affordable for city employees. Teachers, police officers, social workers and health care workers are examples of professions that often cannot afford to live in the cities where they work.
Eichner is chairman of the Continuum Company, a privately held real estate development firm based in New York City he founded in 1981. He has been involved with workforce housing issues for the last few years. He said the COVID-19 pandemic magnified this issue for health care and frontline workers in New York. The individuals working in hospitals could not afford to live where they worked and stayed in hotels during the height of the crisis.
Eichner said his gift combines his interest in workforce housing with his fondness for his alma mater. His high regard for the College of Law and Dean Verna Williams led to the conclusion that the Eichner Fellowship will be successful.
“I see this as being a partnership between academics and a real issue for every city in the United States,” he said.
Bruce has an intimate understanding of the complex issue of workforce housing. I’m grateful for his dedication to action and solutions as well as his trust in UC Law.
Verna Williams Dean and Nippert Professor of Law
In addition to support from law faculty, the Eichner Fellowship will work in collaboration with other areas across UC, including business, planning and design, and arts and sciences. Stakeholder meetings will be held throughout the fellowship, culminating in a colloquium, website, and print publication.
“Bruce has an intimate understanding of the complex issue of workforce housing,” said Verna Williams, Dean and Nippert Professor of Law. “I’m grateful for his dedication to action and solutions as well as his trust in UC Law. Workforce housing is crucial to the long-term vitality and diversity of our cities.”
Eichner said his visits and interactions with UC Law students have been rewarding. In 2011, he was named a Kautz Alumni Master by the colleges of law and business. This forum invited UC alumni to return to campus and share their professional experiences with students.
Featured image at top: UC Law students. Photo/UC Law.
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