Grace Names Johnson as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

COLUMBIA, Md., Jan. 12, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — W. R. Grace & Co. (NYSE: GRA) has elected Cherée H. Johnson as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, with responsibility for all legal matters worldwide, including management of Grace’s legal department. As Corporate Secretary, Johnson is also responsible for corporate governance and matters relating to the Board of Directors. She also serves as Grace’s Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer. Johnson succeeds Mark A. Shelnitz who retired from Grace on December 31, 2020.
Johnson joins Grace from McCormick & Co., Inc., where she served as Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, Assistant Corporate Secretary and Chief Intellectual Property Counsel. Prior to joining McCormick, Johnson was Deputy General Counsel at The Kraft Heinz Company.“Cherée is a results-oriented business leader. Her deep legal knowledge and broad experience make her an exceptional addition to our leadership team,” said Hudson La Force, Grace President and Chief Executive Officer.Johnson earned her Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering with Honors at Florida A&M University and her Juris Doctor at University of Minnesota Law School. She has been a member of several boards, including the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Advisory Board, and is a member of the American Bar Association and USPTO Patent Bar.About GraceBuilt on talent, technology, and trust, Grace is a leading global specialty chemical company. The company’s two industry-leading business segments—Catalysts Technologies and Materials Technologies—provide innovative products, technologies, and services that enhance the products and processes of our customers around the world. With approximately 4,000 employees, Grace operates and/or sells to customers in over 60 countries. More information about Grace is available at grace.com.Forward-looking StatementsThis document contains, and our other public communications may contain, forward-looking statements, that is, information related to future, not past, events. Such statements generally include the words “believes,” “plans,” “intends,” “targets,” “will,” “expects,” “suggests,” “anticipates,” “outlook,” “continues,” or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding future: financial positions; results of operations; cash flows; financing plans; business strategy; operating plans; capital and other expenditures; impact of COVID-19 on our business; competitive positions; growth opportunities for existing products; benefits from new technology; benefits from cost reduction initiatives; succession planning; and markets for securities. For these statements, we claim the protections of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. We are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from our projections or that could cause other forward-looking statements to prove incorrect. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements include, without limitation: risks related to foreign operations, especially in areas of active conflicts and in emerging regions; the costs and availability of raw materials, energy and transportation; the effectiveness of our research and development and growth investments; acquisitions and divestitures of assets and businesses; developments affecting our outstanding indebtedness; developments affecting our pension obligations; legacy matters (including product, environmental, and other legacy liabilities) relating to past activities of Grace; our legal and environmental proceedings; environmental compliance costs (including existing and potential laws and regulations pertaining to climate change); the inability to establish or maintain certain business relationships; the inability to hire or retain key personnel; natural disasters such as storms and floods; fires and force majeure events; the economics of our customers’ industries, including the petroleum refining, petrochemicals, and plastics industries, and shifting consumer preferences; public health and safety concerns, including pandemics and quarantines; changes in tax laws and regulations; international trade disputes, tariffs, and sanctions; the potential effects of cyberattacks; and those additional factors set forth in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and current reports on Form 8-K, which have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and are readily available on the internet at www.sec.gov. Our reported results should not be considered as an indication of our future performance. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on our projections and forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the dates those projections and statements are made. We undertake no obligation to release publicly any revisions to our projections and forward-looking statements, or to update them to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the dates those projections and statements are made.Media Relations
Caitlin Leopold
T +1 410.531.8870
caitlin.leopold@grace.comA photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/332d715c-13d2-4e56-aee0-7726c4290161