US media mogul Oprah Winfrey says the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa will close after the 2027 academic year, with all non‑graduating students guaranteed full scholarships at other schools.
In a statement on Thursday, Winfrey noted that her “dream was never simply to build a school” but “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,” the media mogul and philanthropist said.
She said her foundation would now introduce new scholarship programme for academically gifted girls across South Africa
Current students at the school will complete their education at the academy while any remaining learners affected by the transition will have their tuition fully funded at other top-performing schools until graduation.
The school currently enrols 281 students.
“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.”
The boarding school, located near Johannesburg, will be handed over to local education authorities under the terms of the original agreement nearly two decades after it opened.
More than 1,000 girls from under‑privileged backgrounds have graduated from the academy, which Winfrey established following a 2002 meeting with Nelson Mandela.
JN/APA