FILE: SOUTH AFRICA: US talk show queen Oprah Winfrey opens a multi-million dollar educational academy for disadvantaged South African girls

Record ID: 455780

  • Title: FILE: SOUTH AFRICA: US talk show queen Oprah Winfrey opens a multi-million dollar educational academy for disadvantaged South African girls
  • Date: 4th January 2007
  • Summary: JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (JANUARY 02, 2007) (REUTERS) OPRAH WINFREY AND STUDENTS EMERGE FROM BUILDING TO CUT THE RIBBON / OPRAH AND STUDENTS CUTTING THE RIBBON VARIOUS CLOSE UPS OF STUDENTS WATCHING VARIOUS OF STUDENTS RAISING THE SOUTH AFRICAN AND SCHOOL FLAGS SIGN READING ;"OPRAH WINFREY, LEADERSHIP ACADEMY FOR GIRLS SOUTH AFRICA"
  • Embargoed: 19th January 2007 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Entertainment,Education
  • Reuters ID: LVA10HATI37BSRWS6ZIVAWUWX6KB
  • Story Text: American talk show queen Oprah Winfrey opened a 40 million U.S. dollar (USD) school for disadvantaged South African girls which she has paid for out of her own pocket on Tuesday (January 2).
    The sleekly designed campus, sprawling 52 acres in a sleepy community south of Johannesburg, encompasses classrooms and laboratories equipped with flat screen computers, a yoga studio, a beauty salon and a well-stocked library.
    "When you educate a girl you begin to change the face of a nation," said Winfrey.
    Winfrey said she hoped a better education could shield South Africa girls from contracting HIV, a disease that strikes an estimated 5.5 million of South Africa's 45 million people. "Girls who are educated are less likely to get HIV/AIDS, and in this country which has such a pandemic, we have to begin to change the pandemic," she said.
    The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls was inspired by her own humble beginnings, struggling to survive with no electricity or running water, and as a former victim of physical and sexual abuse.
    "I wanted to educate girls because I was a poor girl, a poor girl who grew up with my grandmother as so many of these girls because of Aids, are now left to be raise by their grandmother. And as I was raised by my grandmother, without running water and no electricity, but given the kind of support, and given the desire to have an education by my grandmother who believed that education was everything, so I wanted to be able to give back to African girls what I've been given," said Winfrey.
    Former South African president Nelson Mandela, on hand for the opening celebration, praised Winfrey, but called on South African to learn from her.
    "We shared our conviction with Oprah, that the gains of our democracy, would be nullified if we did not properly educate our children and youth. She obviously recognised the potential in our youth. South Africans should not only be grateful to you but should take a lesson from you about what personal commitment means," said the elderly statesman.
    American singers Mariah Carey, Tina Turner and Mary J. Blige, comedian Chris Rock, actor Sydney Poitier and filmmaker Spike Lee attended the star-studded school launch.
    "But really it's a life changing experience for the fortunate girls who are able to get in, their lives are gonna be changed for ever. But the ones that did not get in, it will be kind of dicey. But then again, she's not the South African government. And the money she spends is her own money. Even Ms. Winfrey has a limited amount of money (laughs) even she has a limited amount of money," said Spike Lee.
    "This is a foundation for leaders. And that's what education actually do - is give people hope. It's your people and you have more of a belief system of support for that," added Tina Turner.
    "Somebody always inspires somebody else and Oprah's gonna - I hope Oprah inspires everybody, but she's already inspired me," said Chris Rock.
    "I think it is such a useful thing, a necessary thing, an important thing, and its reflection will be very good for education, particularly for children who are orphaned," said Sydney Poitier.
    It was not only Hollywood celebrities who were present at the event - Nobel Prize winner, environmentalist and politician Professor Wangari Mathai was also there to share her joy on this momentous occasion.
    "It is a wonderful gift for South Africa in particular, but for the whole of Africa in general, because leadership is one thing that is very badly needed in our part of the world because it's the leadership that makes the difference," she said.
    The first batch of 152 mostly black students, chosen from thousands of applicants, will eventually be followed by another 300 girls between Grades 7 and 12, Winfrey said.
    Admission criteria means the family of each girl must earn less than 60,000 rand (8,663 USD) annually to get their foot in the door. After that, pupils were hand-picked by Winfrey for displaying strong leadership qualities in interviews. Tuition and board is free at the residential school.
    Activists have criticised the South African government for neglecting public schools particularly in poor and rural areas where classrooms are often overcrowded and inadequately funded, lacking such basic items as textbooks. High levels of classroom violence, teenage pregnancy and drug abuse exacerbate the poor standard of education. While authorities seek to expand a program to waive school fees for some of the poorest South Africans, many believe that the legacy of apartheid-era laws remain a disadvantage for underprivileged black students.
    Private schools are, in large part, reserved for white pupils whose parents can afford tuition payments.
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