CEO speaks to Cougs during International Women’s Week

WSU will bring Kara Tokita, the CEO of her own company, to speak on campus Thursday as an inspiring example of an influential, hardworking woman.

From college, to high-end jobs, to owning her own successful marketing and advertising company, Tokita climbed the ladder to success by placing no limits on what she could achieve.

Kevin Lindquist, International Student Council president, met Tokita in 2011 while he was working in Bellevue, the location of her company’s headquarters. He said he believed Tokita would be an excellent role model for students.

“She’s a good mentor and someone you can ask business-related questions to,” Lindquist said. “Hopefully people can take things from her speech and utilize it further on in their lives.”

Tokita is an American who grew up in Japan because her dad was a colonel in the Air Force, strengthening her international knowledge. Lindquist said he meets with Tokita to catch up once or twice a year.

Her business, TokitaBethune, was launched in the early-2000s and offers a variety of services, including event planning of any type. Athletes like Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan have utilized her company’s services.

Erin McIlraith, marketing and communication coordinator at the Center for Civic Engagement, said she believes it is important to bring guest speakers to WSU students, especially considering the university’s obscure location and minimal access to see a wide range of presenters.

“For me, it’s really nice to be able to see all these different organizations across campus come together to celebrate this and talk about issues related to women,” McIlraith said. “This year the stars aligned, and it grew into a big, beautiful week of events.”

In her speech Tokita will focus on her experiences, how one thing led to the next, how she travels around the world and how this all connects to students, McIlraith said. Tokita will speak from 7 – 8 p.m. on Thursday in the CUB auditorium.

“I think when you get that opportunity to learn someone else’s secret for success, that’s incredibly valuable and it’s so worth taking advantage of,” McIlraith said. “Especially when it’s someone who’s worked with everything from Starbucks to Nike.”

McIlraith said she believes it is important to have women representing a variety of business realms come to campus, and that she is excited about the assortment of guests this year in comparison to previous years.

“[International Women’s Week] is focusing on the intersectional existence of women,” McIlraith said. “They’re talking about being a woman and racism, being a woman and ableism and being a women and sexual identities.”

Tokita is excited to visit Pullman, and it was an easy process to get her here, McIlraith said.

“We’re super lucky to have her coming,” McIlraith said. “It’s definitely a once in a degree opportunity.”

Lindquist will act as Tokita’s liaison during her stay and her first college presentation by showing her around campus and introducing her to faculty and staff.

“I’m mostly excited for her to touch students’ hearts and minds with what information she can relay to them,” Lindquist said, “to help them follow their dreams, answer questions and to be able to learn from her.”