Dr. Leo Groarke* Dean, Brantford Campus Date Posted: September 13, 2004 *For complete c.v. click here Degrees: PhD, Philosophy, University of Western Ontario MA, Philosophy, University of Calgary  BA (Hons.), University of Calgary Email: wlubrantford@wlu.ca (attn: Dr. Leo Groarke) Research Interests: My academic interests include ethics, aesthetics, and the history of ideas. My work in all three areas is motivated by an interest in the limits of rationality and science and an emphasis on concrete ethical and aesthetic questions, as opposed to abstract theoretical disputes.

Representative Publications:

"Skepticism, Ancient" and "Logic, Informal" -- articles in the Stanford World Wide Web Encyclopedia of Philosophy

“Can Capitalism Save Itself? Some Ruminations on the End of Capitalism,” concluding chapter in John Bishop, ed. Ethics and Capitalism, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000. 

“The Fox and the Hedgehog: On Logic, Argument and Argumentation Theory,” ProtoSociology, Vol. 13, 1999.

The Ethics of the New Economy: Restructuring and Beyond. (Edited Anthology) Waterloo: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1998. 

Good Reasoning Matters! new, revised ed. Leo Groarke, Christopher Tindale, Linda Fisher. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1997. 
 
Bio:

My interest in education, and especially the humanities, sprouted during a second try at university, when I stumbled on to a philosophy course at Simon Fraser University, which I was attending on an athletic scholarship (I took the course almost by accident, because it happened to match a blank space in my timetable). Perhaps because I have inherited some of my father's stubborn Irish temperament, I was intrigued by philosophy's refusal to take things for granted, its willingness to ask pointed questions, and its interest in what is right and wrong, and real and not. 

I remain an avid student of philosophy, though my interests have broadened to include questions about the history of ideas, art and aesthetics, education, reasoning and the usefulness of the relevance of the liberal arts to contemporary issues and concerns. As at Laurier Brantford, I try to apply my convictions in a practical way which extends beyond the realm of theory and speculation. 

On the home front, I have three cool kids -- Scott, Jazz and Katie - who keep me busy taking them to (and watching them at) drama, amateurs sports, horse back riding, and an endless variety of new adventures. If I get the chance, you will find me running in Brantford, along trails along the Grand River. Though I was not granted the gift of great co-ordination, I'm always up for a game of ball hockey with the rest of the Laurier Brantford faculty and staff.