Videos (chronological order)
December 2005
Last-class goodbyes and end-of-course party: Fall 2005 Activism Course (PHY 1703), University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. Video directed and produced by Kevin Flack. Professor: Denis Rancourt. Another activism course was offered in the fall 2006 semester in the largest auditorium on campus thanks to student demand and protest, but then the activism course was never allowed to be given again. Rancourt was fired in 2009. See 2005 grievance G-1 and G-5 outcomes >>>HERE.
January 2008
Promotional clip (4 minutes) for filmmaker Peter Beisterfeld’s documentary film “RANCOURT” (in production): Physics class.
The clip shows parts of one class (January 2008) of the controversial fourth-year and graduate solid state physics course PHY 4385-5100, winter 2008 semester. Professor Rancourt was fired on March 31, 2009, under the false pretext of having arbitrarily assigned the A+ grades to the 23 registered students in this course. The grades had been approved by the physics department chair and by the dean of the Faculty of Science, after these administrators had received all the student complaints (three students) about the course that were used to motivate the dean’s “investigation”. The dean’s December 10th decision letter and the student complaints are posted HERE.
September 11, 2008
Professor Denis Rancourt banned from his own trial, September 11, 2008 (7 minutes).
This video shows a press conference followed by an attempt by Professor Rancourt to be heard at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors at which the decision to discipline him with a suspension was made. The discipline was imposed because Rancourt refused to take down university credited copyrighted images from his UofOWatch.blogspot.com blog. The university gives professors the right to use these images for the “positive” promotion of the university. Rancourt argued that this political discrimination was a violation of his academic freedom. Rancourt’s union refused to take on the case in defence of Rancourt. The suspension discipline was then used by the university to justify Rancourt’s ultimate March 2009 firing, under the false pretext of having arbitrarily assigned high grades in one course.
November 12, 2008
Media interview (60 minutes), Talk Ottawa with James Hendricks, Rogers TV (Ottawa), Wednesday November 12, 2008, 9pm.
Overview of context and battle at the University of Ottawa, including “streeter” interviews with students.
November 21, 2008
November 21, 2008, laboratory lockout (3 minutes).
This clip shows the scene when Professor Denis Rancourt held his foot in the door of his laboratory for more than three hours in order to pressure the university to state that it had formally locked him and his students out and removed the professor’s legal responsibility for the laboratory. The students were expelled and the lock was changed earlier that day, without any advance warning or information. Later, a false pretext of an “unauthorized entry” was advanced by the university, without any other explanation.
During the negotiations that followed, the Secretary of the University, Nathalie Des Rosiers, accused Professor Rancourt in writing of having blocked the door in such a way as to prevent a security guard from leaving the laboratory for several hours.
January 7, 2009
Media interview (60 minutes), Talk Ottawa with James Hendricks, Rogers TV (Ottawa), Wednesday January 7, 2009, 7pm.
Overview of situation after December 10th letter of recommendation that Denis Rancourt be dismissed. Rancourt explains the possible link to his position on Israeli policy.
January 23, 2009
Denis Rancourt Banished For Believing In Critical Pedagogy from the voice of the university on Vimeo.
Arrest of Professor Denis Rancourt on University of Ottawa campus, January 23, 2009 (5 minutes).
Professor Rancourt was arrested following the arrest of student Marc Kelly during a presentation at the Cinema Politica/Academica film and discussion series that Professor Rancourt had given continuously for several years (since September 2005).
January 23, 2009
Jail Solidarity For Banished Student Marc Kelly from the voice of the university on Vimeo.
ATV News report of Kelly-Rancourt January 23, 2009, arrests (1 minute).
News report on jail solidarity in response to the arrests of student Marc Kelly and Professor Denis Rancourt at the University of Ottawa Cinema Academica event of January 23, 2009.
February 24, 2009
Rancourt Students Sue President Allan Rock from the voice of the university on Vimeo.
University of Ottawa president Allan Rock being served a law suit by two former graduate students of Professor Denis Rancourt (Sean Kelly and Joey Hickey), following a February 24, 2009, press conference in Tabaret Hall.
March 17, 2009
Final meeting with the university and part of press conference (10 minutes), Tabaret Hall, March 17, 2009, 9am.
This was the final meeting between Professor Denis Rancourt and University of Ottawa representatives before his March 31, 2009, firing. Rancourt had made a public proposal of remediation on March 11th (LINK)
At the March 17th meeting the university refused to discuss Rancourt’s proposal but stated only that it would enter mediation if conditions were met. Rancourt met the conditions and the university then retracted its offer to mediate: LINK
March 17, 2009
Clips from press conference (10 minutes), Tabaret Hall, March 17, 2009, 9am.
Professor Denis Rancourt explains the nature of the university’s accusations against him. Professor Rancourt was fired under the false pretext of having arbitrarily assigned high grades to 23 students in one course in the winter 2008 semester.
March 17, 2009
Supporters speak out at the March 17th "Grades Hurt" event, see all videos.
Mireille Gervais "explains" Denis Rancourt, see video.
April 10, 2009
Media interview (26 minutes), The Agenda with Steve Paikin, TV Ontario (TVO), Friday April 10, 2009, 8pm.
Discussion about grades, pedagogy, the state of higher education, in relation to the University of Ottawa’s politically motivated treatment of Denis Rancourt. The interview was recorded on March 17, 2009, before the university’s March 31st firing of Rancourt.
October 7, 2009
Higher education was his trade, he was a tenured prof and he had it made..."
