An Iowa State professor who was admired in her department for her “holistic” approach to teaching passed away during Thanksgiving break.

Joan Rottler, 55, of Des Moines, died Nov. 21 after a four-year battle with breast cancer. Her memorial service was held Saturday in Des Moines.

Rottler was an instructor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies. She taught in the area of religious studies for 11 years.

Some of the courses Rottler taught during her time at ISU included “Women and Religion” and “World Religion.”

Mary Sawyer, associate professor of religious studies, wrote and delivered a tribute to Rottler at the memorial service.

Sawyer said Rottler will be remembered as a “wonderful teacher” who really cared about her students.

Her holistic methods of teaching, Sawyer said, meant Rottler was “as concerned with heart matters as she was with intellectual matters.”

“She was a person who personally cared deeply about issues of justice for the Earth and for humanity, and that passion carried over in her classroom,” she said.

Sawyer said Rottler’s teaching of “Women and Religion” raised awareness of feminist issues and “enriched the whole educational setting.”

Sawyer stressed that Rottler’s teaching made an impact on her students.

“Many students’ lives were forever changed because they had her as a teacher,” she said.

Angela Renkoski, temporary instructor of journalism and mass communication, said she attended several of Rottler’s workshops and classes. She called Rottler a “very spiritual person.”

“She was really special; she was a catalyst for people to grow either emotionally, spiritually or intellectually,” Renkoski said.

Sawyer said Rottler was teaching “Women in Religion” this semester, but because Rottler was ill, Sawyer sat in during the lectures and will finish the course.

Even though Rottler’s health was ailing, Sawyer said her commitment to teaching did not wane.

“She was sick a good part of the semester, [but] she came to class whenever she could because it meant so much to her to be in a classroom with her students,” she said.

Sawyer said Rottler’s colleagues presented her with an award for excellence in teaching earlier this month.

“The words on the plaque [read] ‘profound care and compassion for students and extraordinary dedication to teaching,'” she said, adding that all of the professors were “amazed” at the effort she made to continue teaching her classes.

“We were all very much enriched by her presence,” she said.

Rottler is survived by her husband Steven of Des Moines; sons Benjamin of Tokyo and Christopher of Des Moines; mother Mary Brockman of Odebolt; sister Kay Clanton of Omaha; and brother Mike Brockman of Nevada City, Calif.