Patricia Ziegler, former lecturer in the Department of Human Development and director of Cornell's nursery school, died Feb. 23 at her home in Ithaca. She was 85.

Ziegler dedicated her career to early childhood education, teaching in the Cornell nursery school as well as at more than a dozen other schools across the country. A hallmark of her teaching was her effort to bring an appreciation of nature to her students.

"She was the most fantastic teacher ever," said Mary Agnes Hamilton, a senior research associate in human development. Ziegler taught Hamilton's son in the Cornell nursery school, and the two became good friends.

"She understood children, but she also understood parents," Hamilton said. "She knew what we were dealing with and how that relationship was so important."

Ziegler contributed several widely used resources to Cornell Cooperative Extension, including a memo about the hospitalization of young children.

She held a bachelor's degree in zoology from the University of Michigan, a teaching certificate from the University of Northern Illinois and a master's degree in early childhood education from the Bank Street School of Education in New York City.

She is survived by her husband, Jerry Ziegler, professor of policy analysis and management and former dean of the College of Human Ecology.

A public memorial service for Ziegler will take place Saturday, April 18, at 3 p.m. in 280 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall.