CHARLESTON, W.Va., March 31, 2014 -- The Arch Coal Foundation named 12 outstanding West Virginia classroom teachers today as recipients of the prestigious Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award. It is West Virginia's longest-running, privately sponsored teacher recognition program, and this is the 26th class of teachers to be honored.

The announcement was made by John W. Eaves, Arch Coal president and chief executive officer. He was accompanied by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin and West Virginia Education Association (WVEA) President Dale Lee. The recipients were honored today at a ceremony at the Clay Center in Charleston.

The 2014 Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award recipients are:

"Today, we celebrate 12 outstanding West Virginia teachers," said Eaves. "These individuals are not only responsible for educating our children, but also for learning new concepts and teaching strategies themselves. They work tirelessly to serve the needs of their students and their communities.

"Teachers often are unheralded for the difference they make," Eaves continued. "So on behalf of the 1,800 employees working at Arch Coal and our subsidiaries in West Virginia, we recognize and congratulate these 12 teachers for their dedication to excellence."

"It is my honor to recognize the wonderful teachers who work each and every day to help our students reach their potential. Great teachers are the key to helping West Virginia's children discover their own abilities and achieve more than they ever believed possible. They are dedicated to educating tomorrow's leaders and committed to putting the needs of their students first," Gov. Tomblin said. "Congratulations to this year's Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award recipients! You are each outstanding examples of the wonderful teachers we have in our state. I'd also like to thank Arch Coal for continuing to support education in the Mountain State."

"Congratulations to this year's Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Award winners," said Lee. "They represent the hard work and sacrifice of the many teachers we find in the classrooms of our public schools. They are to be commended for their commitment to the profession and to the students of our state. I also want to thank Arch Coal for its ongoing commitment to education and to understanding the important role teachers play in the future of our state. We are proud to partner with them again this year. WVEA thanks Arch Coal and our Teacher Achievement Award winners for their efforts to improve public education in West Virginia."

The public nominates teachers for the annual award, and a blue-ribbon panel of past award recipients selects the top 12. In addition to recognition, each teacher is presented with a $3,500 unrestricted cash award, a distinctive trophy and a classroom plaque.

The West Virginia Foundation for the Improvement of Education, a foundation of WVEA, also makes a $1,000 cash award to each teacher's school for use with at-risk students. The WVEA Foundation is funded by WVEA members. It was created in 1993 and to date has awarded nearly $250,000 to schools to assist in the education of at-risk students.

The Teacher Achievement Awards are underwritten by the Arch Coal Foundation and are supported in program promotion by the West Virginia Department of Education, the WVEA and the West Virginia Library Commission. Arch Coal and the Arch Coal Foundation have a long history of supporting educational and community causes in West Virginia. The Arch Coal Foundation also supports teacher recognition or grants programs in Wyoming and Colorado, as well as a number of other education-related causes.

Information about each of today's 12 recipients, as well as past recipients, is posted at archteacherawards.com.

St. Louis-based Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) is one of the world's top coal producers for the global steel and power generation industries, serving customers on five continents. Its network of mining complexes is the most diversified in the United States, spanning every major coal basin in the nation. In West Virginia, Arch Coal subsidiaries employ about 1,800 people. For more information, visit archcoal.com and responsible.archcoal.com.