Ágnes Osztolykán


Ágnes Osztolykán is a Hungarian politician and Romani activist, who was a member of the National Assembly of Hungary between 2010 and 2014. She is a recipient of the 2011 International Women of Courage Award from the United States Department of State.

Life

Osztolykán graduated from the University of Miskolc in 1998 with a degree in political science. She subsequently worked for the Soros Foundation, and then was head of the Decade of Roma Inclusion Program at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor for six years.
She was elected to Parliament in 2010 and was a member of the parliamentary group of Lehet Más a Politika, or Politics Can Be Different Party. On 26 November 2012, she was appointed deputy leader of the LMP parliamentary group.
Osztolykán is an activist for Romani children's education, Roma and minority rights, and the social integration of Roma in Hungary. She is a strong supporter of vocational training which gives students marketable skills for the job market. Outside of her parliamentary duties, she works as a volunteer teacher at a primarily Roma vocational school in Budapest’s poorer Eighth District.