Oprah Winfrey to Close South African Girls’ Academy After Nearly Two Decades

Media mogul and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey has announced that the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls will close at the end of the 2027 academic year, bringing to a close one of Africa’s best-known privately funded educational initiatives for disadvantaged girls.

Winfrey said the decision marks a transition, not an end to her mission of empowering young women through education. Rather than operating a single boarding school, her charitable foundation will expand a nationwide scholarship programme that she says will enable many more academically gifted South African girls to attend top schools across the country.

The academy was established following discussions between Winfrey and former South African President Nelson Mandela about the transformative power of educating girls.

Opened in 2007 near Johannesburg, the tuition-free boarding school was created for academically talented girls from low-income families. Winfrey personally invested about $40 million to build the campus, which features modern classrooms, science laboratories, libraries, sports facilities and student residences.

Over nearly 20 years, the academy has earned a reputation for academic excellence, producing graduates who have gone on to universities in South Africa, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. The institution has become one of the country’s most recognizable symbols of philanthropic investment in education.

Winfrey stressed that the closure should not be viewed as abandoning the project but as an evolution of it.

“The dream was never simply to build a school. It was to invest in the limitless potential of young women,” she said in announcing the transition.

Instead of supporting a limited number of students on one campus, the expanded scholarship initiative is expected to reach significantly more girls from across South Africa, giving them access to leading schools closer to their communities.

Winfrey assured families that no student will be left behind during the transition.

Students currently enrolled will complete their education through graduation, while any remaining pupils affected by the closure will have their education fully funded at other top-performing schools. The campus itself will be transferred to the Gauteng Department of Education, in line with plans that had been envisioned since the academy was founded.

Provincial officials have pledged to preserve the academy’s educational legacy while determining the future use of the campus.

Since opening its doors, the academy has educated hundreds of girls from disadvantaged backgrounds, many of whom have gone on to become doctors, lawyers, academics, entrepreneurs and community leaders.

The school also endured significant challenges. Shortly after opening, allegations of abuse involving a dormitory staff member drew international attention. Winfrey responded by launching an independent investigation, strengthening child protection measures and publicly apologizing to students and families. The staff member was later acquitted in court.

Despite that difficult chapter, education experts and alumni widely regard the academy as one of Africa’s most successful philanthropic education projects, with graduates consistently achieving strong academic outcomes.

Although the physical academy will cease operations after the 2027 academic year, Winfrey insists her commitment to girls’ education in South Africa remains unchanged.

By replacing a single-campus model with a broader scholarship programme, she hopes to extend opportunities to a larger number of young women while continuing the vision she and Nelson Mandela shared nearly three decades ago: using education as a pathway to leadership and social transformation.