Arch Insights
Mineral Wells Elementary’s Fletcher
Earns Arch Coal Achievement Award
CHARLESTON,
W.Va. (March 8, 2011) – With more than three
decades’ teaching experience, William Norcott
Fletcher says his students continue to motivate
him, both in and out of the classroom. “I am
eager to greet them every day because I know I
have an enormous impact on and make a positive
difference in their lives,” he notes. “I provide
a warm, welcoming and consistent learning
environment. As a result, the students manifest
a desire to learn.
“I also realize I may be their main, surrogate
guardian for the majority of their day,” he
adds. “When my students volunteer to enter
science and social studies fairs, prepare for
math field days and spelling bees and put forth
their best effort in the classroom, they inspire
me to become a better teacher.”
Fletcher already ranks among West Virginia’s
best. Today he was among only 12 teachers
statewide to receive a 2011 Arch Coal Teacher
Achievement Award. Arch Coal Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer Steven F. Leer made the
announcement during a presentation ceremony at
the Clay Center in Charleston. He was
accompanied by West Virginia Governor Earl Ray
Tomblin and West Virginia Education Association
(WVEA) Executive Director David Haney.
“William Norcott Fletcher believes that to have
a positive impact on students, a teacher must be
sincere and possess a personality that
exemplifies compassion for his profession, as
well as a concern and respect for each student,”
says Leer. “He believes teachers must be
outstanding role models, with high moral
character and values.”
Fletcher, a Mineral Wells resident, teaches
fourth-grade students at Mineral Wells
Elementary. “The most important thing I do for
my students is give them my time and demonstrate
that I care about them,” says Fletcher, who
regularly devotes his lunch period toward
helping students prepare for math field day and
spelling bee events. Fletcher also has offered
free summer school classes in math for about 10
years, and he provides opportunities for
students to engage in the school’s Relay for
Life fund-raising activities.
“I allow my students to be creative, think
critically, demonstrate confidence and work as a
team,” he adds. “My greatest strength in
teaching is the love I have for my profession. I
love to be in school every day with my students,
and it’s conveyed through my demeanor, attitude
and unique activities I make available to them.
As a result, they enjoy school.”
Fletcher earned his bachelor’s degree at
Glenville State College and a master’s degree at
West Virginia University. He has served as
president of the school’s Faculty Senate for two
years and is a recipient of the Jan Dils/WTAP
News Teacher of the Month Award. Fletcher has
served as coordinator of the school’s Math Field
Day activities for more than two decades. He
also has assisted in regional math field days
and taken part in school and county spelling
bees. This year, he and students created and
videotaped a puppet show to boost the morale of
a classmate battling cancer. Fletcher has served
as the school’s American Cancer Society Relay
for Life chairman for four years, generating
school and student involvement. The school has
collected more than $50,000 toward the cause and
last year delivered a check to the Wood County
Chapter of the American Cancer Society for
$23,500. It was the fifth consecutive year the
school gave the largest donation in the county.
In addition to recognition, awardees receive a
$3,500 unrestricted cash prize, a distinctive
trophy and a classroom plaque. The West Virginia
Foundation for the Improvement of Education, a
foundation of WVEA, makes a $1,000 award to each
recipient’s school, for use with at-risk
students.
The teacher-recognition awards are underwritten
by the Arch Coal Foundation and supported in
program-promotion by the West Virginia
Department of Education, the WVEA and the West
Virginia Library Commission. The Arch Coal
Teacher Achievement Awards is the longest
running, privately sponsored teacher-recognition
program in the state. Nominations are made by
the public, and selection is made by a
blue-ribbon panel of the teachers’ peers –
previous recipients of the award.
The Arch Coal Foundation also supports
teacher-recognition or grant programs in
Wyoming, Utah and Colorado, as well as a number
of other education-related causes.
Arch Coal, Inc. is one of the world’s largest
and most efficient coal producers, with more
than 160 million tons sold in 2010. Arch
supplies cleaner-burning, low-sulfur coal to
customers on four continents through its
national network of mines. In West Virginia,
Arch subsidiaries operate the Mountain Laurel
and Coal-Mac complexes. The company is listed on
the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ACI) and
maintains its corporate headquarters in St.
Louis, Mo.