JOHANNESBURG – Media mogul and philanthropist Oprah Winfrey will wind down the residential operations of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls by the end of 2027, marking the end of a landmark education project that has transformed the lives of hundreds of young South African women over the past two decades.
Instead of operating a single boarding school, Winfrey will launch a nationwide scholarship programme designed to support academically gifted girls at leading schools and educational institutions across South Africa.
The move represents a strategic shift from a campus-based model to one intended to reach significantly more students from disadvantaged communities.
“The dream was never simply to build a school,” Winfrey said in a statement.
“It was to invest in the limitless potential of young women. That mission doesn’t end with one campus. It continues in every girl whose future can be transformed through education.”
She added that the scholarship initiative would expand the impact of the vision that inspired the academy more than 20 years ago.
“I’m excited that this next chapter will allow us to reach even more young women across South Africa and continue the promise that began more than 20 years ago.”
Founded in 2007, the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls was established to provide high-quality education, leadership training and personal development opportunities to academically talented girls from disadvantaged backgrounds across South Africa.
The academy has produced graduates who have gone on to careers in medicine, engineering, education, business, science, the arts and public service both in South Africa and internationally.
According to an independent evaluation conducted in 2024, the academy has achieved strong educational outcomes. The study found that 99% of graduates progressed to higher education, while nearly nine in ten said the school provided opportunities they would not otherwise have had. Almost all respondents also reported that their education had positively affected their families and communities.
Under the new model, scholarships will enable students to attend some of South Africa’s top educational institutions while continuing to receive mentorship, leadership development and higher education support.
Current students will remain at the academy until they complete their studies, with the institution committing to provide uninterrupted academic, financial and personal support throughout the transition.
Once the final class graduates in 2027, the academy’s campus, located south of Johannesburg, will be transferred back to the Gauteng Department of Education in line with the original partnership agreement.
Gauteng MEC for Education, Arts, Culture and Recreation Lebogang Maile thanked Winfrey for her long-standing investment in education, saying her contribution had created opportunities for generations of young women and would continue to leave a lasting legacy beyond the academy itself.
The transition marks a new chapter in Winfrey’s philanthropic work in South Africa, with the expanded scholarship programme expected to extend educational opportunities to a much broader pool of talented young women across the country.
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