Alpha Natural Resources Awards $149,000 in Annual High School Scholarships

BRISTOL, Va., May 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE: ANR), a leading U.S. coal supplier, recently awarded tuition funding to 96 high school graduates in seven states through its High School Scholarship Program.

This year's scholarship winners are slated to collectively receive $149,000 during the upcoming academic year, with $576,000 expected to be invested over the next four years.

The Bristol, Va. -based company's long-range plan is to provide higher-education scholarship assistance to up to 500 high school students over the next decade, representing an estimated $4 million commitment on the part of Alpha.

Kevin Crutchfield, Alpha's CEO said, "Education is the key to the success of our young people. Alpha is committed to doing its part to help students achieve their goals through a college education. We are pleased to be able to make a difference for so many future leaders."

The scholarship program was founded in 2009 and has grown to become one of the largest in the mining industry. The initiative provides annual renewable academic funding in four categories to outstanding high school graduates attending the 150 high schools located in the operational footprint of Alpha's affiliated companies, including Southwest Virginia, West Virginia, Eastern Kentucky, Northeast Tennessee, Western Pennsylvania, Illinois and Wyoming.

Alpha's High School Scholarship Program strengthens the company's already-strong tradition of supporting academic performance and scholarship at the higher-education level. Since 2003, the company has donated nearly $2 million to college foundations, most of which has been used for scholarship purposes.

High school students in Alpha's geographic footprint are eligible to apply for four types of tuition funding, all of which can be renewed annually for up to four years of study if recipients maintain an acceptable academic record.

The program consists of the following scholarship categories:

• General Scholarship of $1,000 per year for high school seniors;
• Sons & Daughters Scholarship of $1,500 per year for children of Alpha affiliate employees;
• Engineering Scholarship of $2,500 per year for high school seniors interested in pursuing engineering degrees; and
• Career & Technical Scholarship of $1,000 per year for high school seniors who plan to pursue a career and technical education.

Students can apply for and receive more than one scholarship if they meet the specified eligibility and performance criteria.

Alpha's High School Scholarship Program is administered by Scholarship America, the nation's largest private-sector scholarship and educational support organization. Recipients are chosen based on several factors, including their academic record, demonstrated leadership and participation in school and community activities, unusual personal or family circumstances, and outside appraisals. For scholarships to be renewed annually, winning students are expected to maintain a 2.5 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale).

Any questions about the Alpha High School Scholarship Program should be directed to Alpha Natural Resources' Manager of Recruiting, Judy Kibler, Manager- Recruiting, at [email protected].

About Alpha Natural Resources

With $7.1 billion in total revenue in 2011, Alpha Natural Resources ranks as America's second-largest coal producer by revenue and third-largest by production. Alpha is the nation's largest supplier of metallurgical coal used in the steel-making process and is a major supplier of thermal coal to electric utilities and manufacturing industries. In 2011 the company had more than 200 customers on five continents. More information about Alpha can be found on the company's Web site at www.alphanr.com.

SOURCE Alpha Natural Resources