Chief diversity officer senior VP for Walt Disney Co.

Toyota Motor Corporation in high-level leadership roles

Latondra Newton, Marion High School Class of 1986, was named chief diversity officer and senior vice president for the Walt Disney Company in 2017, following a long career with Toyota Motor Corp. in various high-level leadership roles.
She is a graduate of Kettering University in Michigan, where an engineering co-op program allowed her to rotate between the classroom and work at the General Motors plant in Marion. She is also earned an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
During her time at Toyota, she rose through the ranks from a purchasing role at their Kentucky plant in 1991 and ending ultimately as group vice president for social innovation, a chief diversity officer for North America, and project general manager of the corporate citizen division. She also oversaw the Toyota USA Foundation and the Toyota Global Mobility Foundation. In that role, she oversaw funding for many community organizations and philanthropic programs.
She was a founding chair of the Women Leaders STEP Awards and a member of the board of directors for the Manufacturing Institute, where she was an advocate for women’s careers in the manufacturing industry. She has also been on the board of trustees for the New Cities Foundation, a global nonprofit focused on better futures for urban areas. Additionally, she has served on the board of directors for the Saint Bernard Project, dedicated to rebuilding the homes and lives of those affected by natural disasters.
Newton was named a Rising Star under 35 in 2000 and one of 100 Leading Women in the North American Automotive Industry in 2010 by Automotive News.