Prestigious Education Awards Go to 10 in Wyoming

Cheyenne (May 3) – Ten Wyoming teachers were honored today as recipients of the 2002 Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award at a ceremony at Jessup Elementary School in Cheyenne.

Arch Coal President and Chief Executive Officer Steven F. Leer, accompanied by Gov. Jim Geringer, Superintendent of Public Instruction Judy Catchpole, and Wyoming Education Association Communications Director Ron Sniffin presented awards to:

“It is obvious that Wyoming is blessed with many, many excellent teachers who bring the magic of learning to their classrooms every day,” Leer said. ”They dare their students to succeed ¾ and then teach them how! These recipients understand that they have been measured against very high standards by their peers and have been found to be among the very best in their profession in Wyoming.”

"The Arch Coal program recognizes teachers who have made a difference in students' lives and encourages other teachers to follow in their footsteps,” Gov. Geringer said. “I encourage other businesses to become more involved with schools in their communities."

"I am so pleased that Arch Coal is setting an example for other Wyoming businesses in recognizing outstanding Wyoming educators. The teachers that they recognize today are role models for the profession,” Catchpole said.

"We applaud Arch Coal for recognizing outstanding Wyoming teachers with its Teacher Achievement Award," said Sniffin. "It is so appreciated when members of the business community recognize the quality of work that is happening in our schools and the impact educators have on our children's lives."

“We are overwhelmed with the outpouring of respect for and admiration of Wyoming’s teachers by the people of the state,” said Greg Schaefer, Arch Coal external affairs director. “More than 450 teachers were nominated for the awards and 122 completed the in-depth application, which was judged by a blue-ribbon panel of educators. Both nominations and applications were significantly higher this year than last, when we initiated our teacher recognition program.

“Our judges informed us they had a very difficult time in selecting the 10 recipients because of the very high quality of the applications. Less than two percentage points separated a significant number of the applicants from the recipients,” Schaefer said.

Each recipient receives a $2,500 unrestricted cash award and a distinctive glass trophy, in addition to other recognition. The Arch Coal teacher recognition program is unique because it features public nomination and peer selection. This is the second year for the Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Awards in Wyoming.

The Department of Education, the Wyoming Education Association, Taco John’s and MiniMart support Arch Coal in the program.

Arch Coal is the nation’s second largest coal producer and employs more than 500 people in Wyoming. The company produces more than 65 million tons of clean-burning, low-sulfur coal annually at its Wyoming operations. Its Black Thunder operation in Campbell County is one of the nation’s largest and most efficient coal mines. Arch Coal is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ACI) and maintains its corporate headquarters in St. Louis.

Information about all 10 recipients is posted on the Arch Coal Web site: www.archcoal.com.