Africa31 July, 20262 min read
Oprah Winfrey Will Close Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa, Gauteng Takes Over Campus
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Winfrey will close the girls' academy at the end of the 2027 academic year. Campus near Johannesburg will be handed to local education authorities per agreement.
Closure and handover
Oprah Winfrey will close the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa at the end of next year, with the 52-acre campus near Johannesburg to be taken over by the Gauteng provincial government. The academy, which opened in 2007 after Winfrey was inspired by conversations with Nelson Mandela, is set to transition its campus-based model into an expanded national scholarship program for academically talented girls across South Africa.
Winfrey said in an academy press release on Wednesday, "The dream was never simply to build a school," adding that "It continues in every girl whose future can be transformed through education." The Associated Press reported Gauteng Provincial Minister for Education Lebogang Maile said students currently enrolled would complete their education with uninterrupted financial support, while the government had not yet disclosed its future plans for the property.
What changes for students
Africanews said students who have not graduated when the school closes after the 2027 academic year will receive full scholarships to complete their education at other schools. The BBC reported that at the end of the 2027 academic year, the boarding school campus near Johannesburg is to be handed over to local education authorities as per the original agreement.
Winfrey’s foundation said the shift would move away from a single boarding school toward a nationwide scholarship programme, and the BBC described the foundation’s denial of online speculation that the closure was due to mismanagement. The BBC also said there are currently 281 students enrolled at the school, and it quoted Winfrey explaining, "It was to invest in the limitless potential of young women."
Legacy, scrutiny, and past controversy
The Independent reported that the academy drew international attention after its 2007 opening when several students accused a dormitory matron of physical and sexual abuse, and it said Winfrey traveled to South Africa, met with students and parents, publicly apologized, and commissioned an independent investigation. The Independent added that the matron was acquitted of criminal charges in 2010, while the BBC said the school has not been without scandal and referenced the same opening-era abuse allegations.
Forbes Africa said the building in Henley-on-Klip, near Meyerton, in Gauteng will be returned to the Gauteng Department of Education as per the original partnership agreement, and it said Winfrey selected the site two years later after being inspired by conversations with Nelson Mandela in December 2000. The BBC reported Gauteng province’s education department said it is "committed to preserving and advancing the academy's legacy," even as the foundation said the move reflects a new strategy to reach more students across South Africa.