Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy to Close Campus in 2027
Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy to Close Campus in 2027. The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG) has announced that it will close its residential campus at the end of the 2027 academic year, bringing to a close two decades of operating the school while expanding its scholarship programme to support more young women across South Africa.
The announcement was made on 29 July 2026, with the Academy confirming that the campus will complete its role as the centre of the programme after the 2027 school year.
In line with the partnership agreement established in the early 2000s, the Academy’s premises and assets will be transferred to the Gauteng Department of Education. The department will determine the future use of the site following the handover.
The Academy said every learner currently enrolled will continue receiving full scholarship support through to the completion of Grade 12, whether they remain at OWLAG or continue their education at another school.
According to the Academy, an expert placement team is working directly with learners and their parents to manage the transition. The process will focus on identifying appropriate schools while prioritising academic continuity, student wellbeing and individual educational needs.
The organisation also confirmed that it will continue supporting students beyond the classroom through mentorship, leadership development and higher education assistance, while maintaining its engagement with its growing network of alumnae.
Although the residential campus will close, the Academy said its next phase will centre on an expanded scholarship programme that will provide academically talented girls with opportunities to attend leading schools across South Africa. The initiative is expected to reach at least twice as many young women as the current model.
Commenting on the announcement, Oprah Winfrey said the vision had always been to invest in the potential of young women through education, adding that the mission would continue by supporting even more students across the country.
The Academy also highlighted findings from an independent study commissioned in 2024, which reported that 99 percent of surveyed graduates progressed to higher education. The study further found that nearly nine in ten respondents said the Academy provided opportunities they would not otherwise have received, while 94 percent said their education had positively transformed their families.
Gauteng MEC for Education, Arts, Culture and Recreation Lebogang Maile thanked Winfrey for her contribution to education in the province and said the transfer of the Academy’s assets would help ensure its legacy of academic excellence, leadership development and educational opportunity continues to benefit future generations.
