Gauteng Education Department To Take Over Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy

The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) has confirmed that it will assume responsibility for the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy (OWLA) after the school completes its final academic year in 2027.

The Mayerton-based academy, founded by media mogul Oprah Winfrey in 2007, has educated girls from Grade 8 to Grade 12 under the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) curriculum while also offering leadership and emotional development programmes.

Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy To Transition To Gauteng Education Department

GDE spokesperson Onwabile Lubhelwana said preparations for the transfer are already underway, with the official handover expected at the end of the 2027 academic year.

“The MEC confirms that the administrative processes for the academy’s full transfer to the GDE are underway, with the full takeover expected at the end of the 2027 academic year. The MEC can further confirm that this transition will preserve the academy’s legacy of academic excellence.”

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The Gauteng Department of Education is expected to take over management of the campus from 2028. However, the department has not yet announced how the facility will be used under provincial administration.

Oprah Winfrey Reflects On Academy's Legacy And Mandela's Vision

Announcing the transition, Winfrey said the academy was inspired by discussions she had with former President Nelson Mandela 25 years ago.

“I wanted to be able to give back to girls who were like myself,” she said.

She reflected on welcoming the academy's first group of 75 learners in 2006, saying they arrived with hopes of building brighter futures.

Since opening its doors, the academy has produced more than 1,000 alumni, many of whom have gone on to pursue higher education and careers in South Africa and abroad.

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“I’m proud to say that 870 Owlag graduates have attended college and university all over the world,” Winfrey said.

“I am dazzled and in awe of them, spanning every area of the workforce. They’re business women, lawyers, mothers, doctors, digital content creators, artists, CEOs.”

Winfrey said the academy had fulfilled the promise on which it was founded.

“Nearly 1 000 young women later, I know the promise has been kept.”

Scholarships And Education Partnerships To Continue Beyond 2027

Winfrey said her foundation's work in education would continue even after the residential campus closes at the end of 2027.

“Today that mission enters its next chapter. The dream that began with one academy will now reach even farther, opening doors for even more young women across South Africa through scholarships and educational partnerships.”

She added that learners would continue receiving mentorship, leadership development and support for higher education.

“The investment in girls’ education will continue for generations to come… The dream was never meant to live inside one place. It was always meant to live inside every girl.”

Winfrey confirmed that ownership of the campus would return to South Africa after the school's final academic year.

“At that time, the school grounds will be returned to South Africa and the Gauteng Department of Education, as envisioned in the original partnership.”

She said the transition marked the continuation, rather than the conclusion, of the vision she shared with Mandela.

“The mission continues. The promise Nelson Mandela and I shared 25 years ago remains the same today, to help young women discover their own power, transform their own lives and, in doing so, transform the future of South Africa.”

In a statement, Gauteng MEC for Education, Arts, Culture and Recreation Lebogang Maile thanked Winfrey for her longstanding contribution to education in the province.