Dr. Kyler Leiter is the 2026 Charles E. Tressler Distinguished Teacher Award Recipient
Dr. Kyler Leiter, a Pre-Kindergarten teacher at Carroll Manor Elementary School, is the 2026-27 recipient of the Charles E. Tressler Distinguished Teacher Award presented annually to honor distinguished teaching in Frederick County Public Schools.
Dr. Leiter is in his fourth year as a Pre-Kindergarten teacher at Carroll Manor Elementary, where he previously served as a kindergarten teacher. He was also a special education instructional assistant at Middletown Primary School.
Leiter was surprised with the news of being named the Tressler Award recipient by FCPS Superintendent Dr. Cheryl L. Dyson, Carroll Manor Elementary Principal Kimberly Robertson, and system leaders.
“In addition to supporting some of our youngest learners, Dr. Leiter is devoted to serving his school and his community in so many different ways,” Dyson said. “I’m so grateful and appreciative of his many contributions to FCPS, and I’m also grateful to Hood College for providing this opportunity to celebrate teaching in our community.”
Named for a former member of the Hood College faculty who encouraged young people to enter the profession of teaching, the Charles E. Tressler Distinguished Teacher Award recognizes an FCPS teacher who has had a significant impact on young people, is sponsored by Hood College, and was established through a gift from the late Samuel Eig of Gaithersburg.
Dr. Leiter, a Linganore High graduate and a National Board Certified educator, earned his Ph.D in Instructional Leadership for Changing Populations from Notre Dame of Maryland University in 2025. He also earned a Master’s in Elementary Education from Mount St. Mary’s University in 2018, where he currently is an adjunct professor. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Computer Animation from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2013.
At Carroll Manor Elementary, Dr. Leiter has served as the Pre-K team leader and as a member of the School Improvement team. He has sponsored and supported several student clubs.
In the community, Dr. Leiter has coached wrestling for the Carroll Manor Recreation Council and was a Court Appointed Special Advocate for Abused and Neglected Children in Foster Care for the Mental Health Association of Frederick.
Dr. Leiter is currently participating in the Maryland Early Childhood Leadership Program Coaching Pilot and is a District Instructional Mentor for educators in Grades PreK-2.
He completed the FCPS Vanguard Blending Learning Teacher Leadership Program and was part of the 2024-25 Maryland Early Childhood Leadership Fellowship cohort in 2024-25. He wrote curriculum for several subjects and has spoken nationally and internationally on the topic of early childhood education, including for the European Early Childhood Association in Slovakia.
