A scholarship program benefiting talented young women nationwide will replace the South African boarding school Oprah Winfrey opened in 2007, the media mogul announced Wednesday, July 29, 2026.
Winfrey, 72, will shutter the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG) when the 2027 academic year concludes, redirecting resources toward educational support that will reach roughly twice as many students across multiple institutions. The 52-acre campus south of Johannesburg, constructed for a reported $40 million near the town of Henley-on-Klip, will transfer to Gauteng provincial education authorities.
A representative for Winfrey said the expanded scholarship model represents the heart of the decision after nearly two decades of operation. More than 1,000 girls have graduated from OWLAG since its founding, with alumnae now working as doctors, lawyers, engineers, artists, executives and entrepreneurs at institutions across South Africa, the United States and Europe.
Transition Protects Current Students
The 281 students currently enrolled will complete their education without disruption, Lebogang Maile, the provincial minister for education, confirmed. Those who have not yet graduated when the facility closes will transfer to other top-tier schools with tuition paid through completion. Gauteng’s education department pledged to preserve and advance the academy’s legacy while continuing to serve the province’s residents.
“The dream that began with one academy will now reach even farther,” Winfrey said in a video, outlining her vision to expand access for additional young women via scholarship funding and educational collaborations.
Wednesday’s statement from the academy confirmed that turning over the property was always part of the founding arrangement. Winfrey’s charitable foundation financed and operated the boarding school for girls in grades eight through 12, but the handover to provincial education authorities was included in the original agreement.
Origins in Conversations With Mandela
Discussions between Winfrey and Nelson Mandela in 2002 planted the idea for an institution focused on students from under-privileged backgrounds. The anti-apartheid leader who served as South Africa’s president spoke with Winfrey about how educating girls could change lives. When the school opened five years later, Mandela attended the opening ceremony.
The grounds hold six science and computer laboratories, 21 classrooms, a 10,000-volume library, and a 600-seat theater. Officials did not immediately say what Gauteng provincial government intends to do with the property once the transfer is complete.
Winfrey explained that her mission extended beyond constructing a single school. She said the dream aimed to unleash the limitless potential of young women, an objective that continues with every girl who benefits from educational access.
Controversies and Achievements
Shortly after opening in 2007, the academy faced accusations that a dormitory matron physically and sexually abused multiple students. Winfrey traveled to South Africa to meet with the impacted students and their parents, publicly apologized, and commissioned an independent investigation. The matron was acquitted when criminal proceedings concluded in 2010.
Critics questioned from the start whether the elaborate campus — with its reported amenities that included dual theaters, a yoga studio and a beauty salon — represented the most efficient use of resources. Some commentators suggested the funds could have supported a larger number of students spread throughout the country. Online speculation about mismanagement resurfaced following the recent closure announcement, but a foundation spokesperson dismissed claims that any such issues influenced the decision.
Andronica Klaas, who graduated in 2012 and now serves as a senior engineering lead at Meta, said the school transformed how she viewed her own potential. “OWLAG convinced me that preparation, character and purpose mattered more than where I came from,” she said.
Reflecting on alumnae who have become business leaders, attorneys, mothers, physicians, artists and executives, Winfrey struck a note of pride. “I am dazzled and in awe of them,” she said. The promise does not end with the campus — it keeps growing.
