The celebrated media mogul Oprah Winfrey announced on July 29, 2026, that she would shutter her South African boarding school for girls at the conclusion of the 2027 academic year, pivoting instead toward a broader scholarship initiative.
The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG), which serves students in grades eight through 12, will transfer its 52-acre property near Johannesburg to Gauteng province’s education authorities once classes conclude. The handover fulfills an understanding built into the school’s creation: Winfrey’s charitable foundation would operate and fund the institution, but ownership would eventually pass to local government.
Winfrey, now 72, emphasized that her vision never centered on a single campus alone. She described her objective as releasing the limitless potential within young women—an ambition that transcends any particular building and endures in every student transformed by access to learning.
From Mandela’s Vision to a National Program
The academy’s roots stretch back to 2002, when Winfrey met with Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first democratically elected president and a towering figure in the fight against apartheid. Their dialogue explored how educating girls might transform communities. That exchange planted the idea for a school targeting students from disadvantaged circumstances. When OWLAG welcomed its inaugural class in 2007, Mandela attended the ribbon-cutting.
Constructed in the village of Henley-on-Klip for a reported $40 million, the facility spanned 52 acres and featured 21 classrooms, six science and computer labs, a 10,000-volume library, and a 600-seat theater. Provincial officials have yet to disclose plans for the site once they assume control.
Gauteng’s education department pledged to uphold the academy’s founding principles. Lebogang Maile, the provincial minister for education, confirmed that all 281 currently enrolled students would complete their studies without interruption and with continued financial backing.
Wider Reach Through Scholarships
Rather than withdrawing from South African education entirely, Winfrey plans to expand a national scholarship effort that places academically gifted girls in leading schools throughout the country. A representative for the media executive said the revised approach would roughly double the total number of students who benefit—a change the spokesperson characterized as the motivation behind closing the boarding school after nearly 20 years.
Students still at OWLAG when it shutters will transfer to other elite institutions, with Winfrey covering full tuition through their graduation. The scholarship program will launch once those remaining pupils have moved on.
“The dream that began with one academy will now reach even farther,” Winfrey said in a video.
Controversies and Accomplishments
The school’s history includes turbulence. In 2007, soon after opening, a dormitory matron was accused by several students of physical and sexual abuse. Winfrey traveled to South Africa, met with affected families, issued a public apology, and commissioned an independent investigation. The matron stood trial and was acquitted in 2010.
Critics also questioned the campus’s opulence, which reportedly included two theaters, a yoga studio and a beauty salon. Some observers argued the funds could have supported more girls if distributed differently. The recent closure sparked online rumors of mismanagement, but a public relations consultant representing the foundation rejected any suggestion that operational troubles prompted the decision.
Despite the controversies, the academy achieved its educational mission, according to foundation data. More than 1,000 graduates have emerged from the school, pursuing higher education at universities in South Africa, the United States and Europe. Alumnae now work as doctors, lawyers, engineers, artists, executives and entrepreneurs.
Andronica Klaas, who graduated in 2012 and now holds a senior engineering lead position at Meta, attributed her trajectory to the school. “OWLAG convinced me that preparation, character and purpose mattered more than where I came from,” she said.
Reflecting on graduates now scattered across professions, Winfrey expressed admiration. “I am dazzled and in awe of them,” she said, noting alumnae who have become businesswomen, lawyers, mothers, doctors, artists and chief executives.