For Donors

Every dollar becomes
more than three.

It’s time to stop the cycle of debt that limits career choices for law students and turns public-interest-minded applicants away. Please support this pilot program with Stanford Law School. Your gift today will help improve the legal profession and enhance legal education by empowering more students to explore alternative career paths. 

Improve the legal profession by giving more students the opportunity to choose.

As the debt burden of a law school education continues to increase, its impact on the lives and career choices of law graduates is only matched by the damage to the legal profession. For many graduates, the high cost of repayment forces them to abandon public service or public interest opportunities in favor of more lucrative opportunities. This cycle not only turns some public interest-minded applicants away, but the legal profession and our country suffer when interested, talented lawyers don’t work on society’s most important issues

It’s time to stop the cycle—by giving law graduates a choice. 

How it Works for Students

Seeded by gifts, the Flywheel Fund provides Fellows access to $170,000 in upfront funding to cover tuition and expenses over 3 years.

Graduates who go on to earn less than $100,000/year make no repayments, thanks to LRAP forgiveness through SLS.

Graduates who earn above $100,000/year make repayments at a rate based on their income, and capped at the cost of a Federal PLUS Loan.

Graduate repayment is recycled to empower the next generation of Fellows, building a self-sustaining Fund by Year 13.

How Your Gift Will Grow

Every dollar donated to the Flywheel Fund will have an immediate impact—and grow to have more than 3.5 times the impact in years to come.

  • Our initial cohort of 20 Flywheel Fellows will be funded directly through donor contributions.
  • By Year 2, initial cohort graduates earning >$100,000 will begin making payments into the Flywheel Fund to support future students, while Stanford Law School will make payments on behalf of Fellows earning less.
  • By Year 13, we anticipate the Flywheel Fund to reach sustainability with no additional donations required.
  • Over the first 15 years, each $1,000 donated by investors will be enhanced by $120 of contributions from Stanford Law School and $2,450 of payments by Fellows earning >$100,000. This ensures the scaled impact and long term longevity of each initial donor dollar, and means that each $1 donated today will generate more than $3.50 for the benefit of future Fellows.

Ready to empower the next generation of lawyers at SLS—or elsewhere? Contact us today to learn more.

**Stanford does not endorse the Flywheel Income Share Loan. The Flywheel Fund is not affiliated with Stanford University nor Stanford Law School.**