University professor granted leave after anti-vaccination controversy
Archive 2015 Feb 11, 2015 Arieshadela Irwantini
CANADA (REUTERS) – A professor who has come under fire for teaching anti-
vaccination materials at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Melody Torcolacci is
stepping down for the rest of the term.
Torcolacci has been granted leave from the teaching of HLTH 102 after students in her
class complain they were tested on slides with unsubstantiated claims, including a
discredited study linking vaccines to autism. Dr. Ian Gemmill, a local medical officer of
health, said he wrote to the director of the kinesiology department to object Torcolacci’s
teachings two years ago.
The university then made headlines last week when a PowerPoint presentation from
Torcolacci’s first-year class showed what looked like a heavy anti-vaccination focus in
her teaching.
