Coricka White has made history as the first Black woman to serve as refinery manager at the Domino Sugar plant in Baltimore.
Since May, White has been in the position and is proud to be the first Black female manager at the sugar refinery. The 99-year-old facility is owned by ASR Group.
“I’m proud to say yes and happy to be the first,” White told The Baltimore Sun. “And definitely don’t want to be the last.”
White started at the Domino Sugar company in 2003 as a process engineer and worked her way up the ladder. Other former positions include working as assistant manager at a refinery in Louisiana and the Baltimore location.
“I’m looking at myself as being a trailblazer and hope that I can pave the way for folks like myself to follow,” she added. “I definitely stand on the shoulders of some very strong folks here, and I’d like to think of my success as the success of the Domino family. It speaks to how progressive our organization is.”
The Baltimore refinery has more than 300 employees and can refine over 85,000 tons of raw sugar a year. White says Domino Sugar will ensure the plant can keep up with the demand.
“That is huge for a refinery of our size that is doing more than 6 million pounds a day,” she said. “That gives us the capability to run our operations a little bit differently than what we’ve done in the past… We’re not only investing, but we are embracing technology so that we can continue to move the refinery forward.”
Kelly DeAngelo, vice president of ASR Group North America, believes White is great for the position.
“She is a trusted, results-oriented leader who brings out the best in her colleagues. The Baltimore refinery has a bright future and is in excellent hands with Coricka,” DeAngelo told The Baltimore Sun.
