Oprah Winfrey has announced that the leadership academy for girls she founded in South Africa nearly two decades ago will close at the end of the 2027 academic year, bringing an end to one of her most ambitious education initiatives.
The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG), located near Johannesburg, will hand over its campus to the Gauteng provincial education authorities in line with the original agreement reached when the school was established.
The media mogul said students who will not have completed their education before the closure will receive full scholarships to continue their studies at other schools.
Since opening its doors in 2007, the academy has graduated more than 1,000 young women from disadvantaged backgrounds. Winfrey launched the $40 million boarding school after meeting South Africa’s anti-apartheid hero and former President Nelson Mandela in 2002, with the goal of providing quality education to academically gifted girls from underprivileged communities.
Addressing the decision to close the campus, Winfrey said the mission of the academy would continue through a nationwide scholarship programme.
