Oprah Winfrey to Close Her South African Girls' School
Johannesburg, 30 July 2026
Oprah Winfrey will close her South African boarding school in 2027, transitioning to a scholarship programme designed to double the number of disadvantaged girls receiving funded education.
A Strategic Pivot in Educational Philanthropy
On 29 July 2026, global media mogul and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey, 72, announced a structural shift in her South African educational legacy [3]. The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG), a tuition-free boarding school located on a 22-acre campus in Henley-on-Klip, south of Johannesburg, will officially close its residential operations at the end of the 2027 academic year [1][4]. Under the terms of the original partnership agreement, the expansive physical campus will be handed over to the Gauteng Department of Education, which has pledged to maintain the institution’s educational legacy [1][4][5].
Scaling Impact Through a New Financial Model
The transition represents a shift from a high-overhead physical asset to a flexible, direct-aid scholarship model [3][4]. Originally constructed at a cost of $40 million (approximately £20 million) [1][4], the state-of-the-art campus has provided intensive, high-quality residential education to academically gifted girls from disadvantaged backgrounds [1][4]. By moving away from maintaining the physical infrastructure, Winfrey’s foundation plans to fund an expanded scholarship programme [1][3]. Representatives for Winfrey have indicated that this strategic shift will double the number of young women receiving educational funding [3]. With 281 students currently enrolled at the academy [1], transitioning to a model that representatives state will double educational access [3] means the initiative could support up to 562 young women across South Africa.
Legacy, Success, and Past Controversies
Established in 2007, the academy was born out of a 2002 meeting between Winfrey and the late South African President Nelson Mandela [1][5]. Over nearly two decades, the school has graduated more than 1,000 girls [1][3], many of whom have built prominent careers as doctors, lawyers, engineers, and executives [1][2]. Notable alumni include Andronica Klaas, a 2012 graduate who now serves as a senior engineering lead at the technology giant Meta [1][2]. Despite these successes, the school has occasionally attracted public scrutiny [1]. At its launch, critics questioned the lavishness of the campus, which featured a yoga studio, a beauty salon, and two theatres, arguing that the $40 million budget could have been distributed more widely [1][4]. The academy also navigated early operational challenges, including a 2010 scandal in which a former school matron was accused of abuse but subsequently acquitted, followed by a defamation lawsuit from a former headmistress that was settled out of court the same year [4].
Ensuring a Seamless Transition
Winfrey has assured the public that the winding down of the boarding school will not disrupt the education of its current pupils [1][4]. Students who will not have graduated by the time the campus closes at the end of 2027 will receive full scholarships funded by Winfrey to attend other top-tier schools [1][3]. A PR consultant for the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Foundation, Nico Olwagen, dismissed online speculation attributing the closure to administrative mismanagement, reiterating that the decision is entirely strategic [1]. Winfrey expressed that her core mission to empower young women through education remains unchanged, stating that this next phase will allow the foundation to reach even more students across the country [1][2].