1. Denis Rancourt is a former professor of physics at the University of Ottawa.
14 Facts About Denis Rancourt
1. 2.
Denis Rancourt obtained his bachelors degree in 1980 and subsequently his masters degree in 1981 in physics from the University of Toronto.
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Denis Rancourt later obtained a PhD from the University of Toronto in physics in 1984.
4.
Denis Rancourt subsequently held several postdoctoral positions before obtaining a permanent position at the University of Ottawa which he held for over 20 years, where he eventually obtained the rank of full professor.
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In June 2008 a labour law arbitrator sided with Denis Rancourt and ruled that "teaching science through social activism is protected by academic freedom".
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Denis Rancourt was removed from all teaching duties in the fall of 2008 because the dean of the faculty of science did not agree with his granting A+ grades to 23 students in one course of the winter 2008 semester.
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Denis Rancourt grieved the dismissal and the Canadian Association of University Teachers ran an Independent Committee of Inquiry into the matter.
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The dismissal case went to binding arbitration where Denis Rancourt's union took the position that the grading issue was a pretext to remove Denis Rancourt and that the termination was done in bad faith.
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On March 10,2014, Denis Rancourt's union announced that it would appeal the Arbitrator's award.
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The action went to trial in May 2014, but Denis Rancourt walked out of the trial in the first week citing "reasonable apprehension of bias" and a "kangaroo court", because the judge had struck out one of his defenses during his opening statement to the jury.
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In June 2014, the court found Denis Rancourt had libeled St Lewis, and awarded $350,000 in damages, plus court costs.
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Denis Rancourt appealed the decision, but his appeal was denied and he was ordered to pay St Lewis $30,000 in costs for the appeal.
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In 2007, Denis Rancourt published an essay disputing the scientific consensus on climate change on his blog, which has served as a platform for climate denial by politicians such as James Inhofe.
14.
In 2024, Denis Rancourt made statements expressing support for various fringe views regarding COVID-19, including suggesting that the virus did not exist.