| Initiative of Critical Students | |
|---|---|
| Chairperson | Iris Schwarzenbacher |
| Founded | 1976 |
| Headquarters | Vienna |
| Mother party | Social Democratic Party of Austria |
| International affiliation | none |
| European affiliation | Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions (OBESSU) |
| Website | www.aks.at |
The Initiative of Critical Students (de: Aktion kritischer SchülerInnen, AKS) is a left-wing school students' organization in Austria. The AKS demands a "socially equal, democratic and fear-free" school and society.
Chairperson of the AKS is Iris Schwarzenbacher (since June 2009). The AKS is organized in the federal organization, nine state organizations and local groups.
The AKS sees itself as a progressive organization and advocates an "open, solidly and pacifist society", in which no one has advantages or disadvantages due to origin, gender, sexual orientation or material or religious background.
It tries to motivate students to think critically about the world they live in, question authorities, rules and conventions and reflect implicitnesses. The AKS sees school as a part of society which forms the next generation and thereby is a major factor in a society's development.
Representing student's interests, AKS organizes seminars, offers support and law advice for students as well as advanced education outside schools. Important parts of the work of AKS are being part in local, state-wide and federal student representation boards, supporting local chapters and working in student newspapers.
From 2003 to 2005 AKS had the majority in Austria's federal student representation, AKS members Romana Brait and Selma Schmid each served a one-year term as Bundesschulsprecherinnen (heads of the federal student representation). However, since 2005, the conservative Schülerunion (Student's Union) won a majority.