ST. LOUIS, May 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Arch Coal Foundation today announced that 16 recent high school graduates have been chosen as 2013 Arch Coal Scholars.

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The Arch Coal Scholars program honors outstanding scholastic achievement by the children of the employees of Arch Coal and its subsidiaries. Each of this year's scholars will receive a $2,000 annual scholarship to an accredited college or university for up to four years.

"We are honored to recognize this year's class of Arch Coal Scholars," said John W. Eaves, Arch Coal president and chief executive officer. The scholars program is in its 24^th year. "We congratulate this impressive group of students on their accomplishments, and we look forward to their continued success."

The 2013 Arch Coal Scholars are:

Arch Coal Scholars are selected on the basis of academic record, potential to succeed, leadership and participation in school and community activities. Also included in the application are a statement of education and career goals, a work history and an outside appraisal.

This year's top-rated Arch Coal Scholar, Zachary Joseph, was named the 2013 Kendra Bradley Washburn Memorial Scholarship recipient. Zachary graduated from Letcher County Central High School in Whitesburg, Ky. He was a 2012 Kentucky Governor's Scholar and received a University of Kentucky Presidential Scholarship. He was an all-district and an all-region soccer player, a state finalist in speech competition and a member of the school's regional champion quick-recall team. The Washburn Memorial Scholarship is named for the late daughter of a former Arch Coal director and is given each year to the Arch Coal Scholar that received the judges' highest ranking.

"Arch Coal and the Arch Coal Foundation have a longstanding commitment to education, ranging from honoring outstanding teachers to supporting innovative classroom projects and institutions of higher learning," Eaves said. "The Arch Coal Scholars program is an important investment in our employees and in the future of tomorrow's leaders."

Scholarship America, the country's largest private sector scholarship and educational support organization, administers all aspects of the scholarship competition, including the independent selection process.

Since the Arch Coal Scholars program began in 1989, the program has provided four-year scholarships to more than 250 new high school graduates. The Arch Coal Foundation also supports educational excellence through its annual Arch Coal Teacher Achievement Awards in West Virginia, Wyoming and Utah, and through a teaching grants program in Delta County, Colo.

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 in 25 countries on five continents. Its network of mining complexes is the most diversified in the United States, spanning every major coal basin in the nation. Arch Coal and the Arch Coal Foundation have a long history of supporting educational and community causes. For more information, visit www.archcoal.com

SOURCE Arch Coal Foundation