This fall, students in Notre Dame Law School’s Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic played a key role in helping launch a new Christ-centered school located on the west side of South Bend. Under the guidance of adjunct professor Brendan Wilson and legal fellow Brett Cavanaugh, Clinic students assisted in the formation of The Willows Academy, a new Christian school that plans to open its doors in 2026 serving students in grades K–5.
The Willows Academy seeks to provide a high-quality, classical education rooted in Christian principles while remaining open to families of all faith and socioeconomic backgrounds. For its founder, Sarah Bruce, turning that vision into reality required navigating the legal complexities of starting a faith-based nonprofit.
Bruce expressed her appreciation for the Clinic’s role in helping The Willows Academy move from concept to a reality. “We are deeply grateful for the expertise and thoughtful care the Clinic’s leadership and students provided as we navigated the most foundational elements of our school start-up,” Bruce said. “Their creative, attentive guidance has been invaluable to The Willows Academy. What a gift to receive these services and to partner with a team mutually aligned in supporting faith-rooted flourishing.”
The Clinic's transactional practice provides second- and third-year law students the opportunity to work closely with nonprofit organizations, offering guidance on matters such as tax compliance, corporate governance, strategic planning, employment, and more. This real-world experience helps students deepen their understanding of legal practice while supporting nonprofits in carrying out their religious missions.
Clinic students John Gatt and Savannah Shoffner drafted the school’s articles of incorporation, bylaws, and conflict of interest policy, guided the organization through incorporation in the State of Indiana, and prepared its application for recognition as a tax-exempt organization.
Gatt emphasized that the experience highlighted the collaborative nature of legal practice. “Unlike in a law school classroom, which emphasizes individual learning, this project provided an opportunity to collaborate with many others,” he said. “You start to recognize that being a successful lawyer requires more than just knowing the law.”
Gatt and Shoffner gained hands-on experience counseling a real client while addressing the unique legal issues that arise for faith-based nonprofits. Their work included tailoring governance documents to reflect the school’s Christian identity while also meeting federal requirements for educational nonprofits, such as nondiscrimination and dissolution provisions.
The Clinic students met and communicated regularly with Bruce throughout the fall as the school’s plans developed. The work involved translating Bruce’s vision for the school into legal language, including describing the planned curriculum, governance structure, and mission.
For Gatt, the project aligned closely with the reasons he chose to attend law school. “My interest in pursuing a legal education was rooted in the idea the law provides me with an opportunity to make a definitive impact on people’s lives and serve my community, and this project has exemplified exactly that,” he said.
Shoffner likewise reflected on the importance of client relationships. “Working with real clients has shown me that the practice of law goes beyond knowing the right doctrine,” she said. “A good lawyer is a good counselor who helps their clients make wise decisions, ask the right questions, and accomplish their goals.”
The Willows Academy project was one of more than fifteen transactional projects handled by Clinic students during the fall semester. Projects included forming new nonprofit entities, drafting articles of incorporation, bylaws, and corporate policies, preparing tax-exempt applications, and counseling on a broad range of financial and governance issues.
“We are so grateful for the opportunity to work with local charities, like The Willows Academy, that do great work for the community,” said Wilson. “These partnerships allow our students to serve real clients while supporting organizations that are making a meaningful impact.”
The experience also offers students an opportunity to see the tangible impact of their work. “It's powerful knowing that a school will open its doors, in part, because of work you did as a law student,” Cavanaugh said. “That’s a perspective you do not always get in law school.”
As The Willows Academy prepares for its launch, the Clinic continues its work supporting faith-based organizations nationwide, equipping students to serve as legal advisors through transactional legal practice.
About the Notre Dame Law School Religious Liberty Clinic
The Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic is a teaching law practice that educates, forms, and prepares Notre Dame law students to become the rising generation of religious liberty leaders by training students in the practice of the law as they defend religious freedom for all people.
Under the guidance of Law School faculty and staff, students work on a broad variety of legal matters to promote religious freedom on behalf of individuals and organizations of all beliefs—both domestically and abroad. The Clinic represents clients from all faith traditions to promote not only the freedom for people to hold religious beliefs but also their fundamental right to express those beliefs and to live according to them. Learn more about the work of the Clinic here.