END OF AN ERA: OPRAH WINFREY TO CLOSE HER SOUTH AFRICAN GIRLS’ SCHOOL AFTER 20 YEARS

Nearly two decades after opening its doors, Oprah Winfrey is preparing to close the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa.

The prestigious boarding school, which opened in 2007 following a promise inspired by conversations between Oprah and the late Nelson Mandela, will officially end operations in its current form after the 2027 academic year.

But Oprah isn’t walking away from the mission.

Instead, she is changing how she delivers it.

The media mogul and philanthropist plans to move away from operating one residential school and expand a scholarship programme supporting academically talented girls at schools across South Africa - potentially allowing her initiative to reach even more young women.

Current students will not simply be abandoned by the transition. The academy will graduate its remaining senior classes, while younger students who need to transfer will continue to receive financial support through to graduation.

Since opening, more than 500 young women have graduated from the academy, with many going on to study at leading universities in South Africa, the United States and Europe.

The 52-acre campus will eventually be handed back to the Gauteng Department of Education, in keeping with the original agreement surrounding the property.

It may be the end of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls as we know it, but perhaps not the end of the dream behind it.

After 20 years of investing heavily in one extraordinary school, Oprah appears ready to see whether that same investment can reach even more girls across South Africa.

A closing chapter - or simply the beginning of a much bigger one?