Editorial: Outgoing COM president set a good track. His replacement has background to keep it going.

The transition at College of Marin, from longtime President David Wain Coon to one of his vice presidents, Jonathan Eldridge, should be a smooth one.

Coon has led COM since 2010, advancing a renaissance of the college’s two campuses, growth in enrollment and curricula, and maintaining the college’s reputation for academic and artistic achievement.

He also steered the college through the challenges of the pandemic.

Coon’s strong leadership and community focus were important in building on our local pride in COM and winning voter support for a second capital bond measure for repairing and modernizing its campuses and facilities.

Eldridge will be only the 11th president in the college’s 98-year history.

In recent years, it has been a challenging job, turning around declining enrollment and initiating new programs responding to changes in the college’s student body and their needs, recruiting and retaining top-notch faculty and leading an ambitious redevelopment of both campuses, Kentfield and Indian Valley in Novato.

Coon has not only been a stabilizing force, he has been a champion for new programs and projects that reflect ongoing changes in our community.

Coon also put the long-shuttered and damaged Bolinas Marine Field Station on a path to being rebuilt and restored as a shoreline laboratory and classroom. For years, the lab’s fate had been in limbo, including a plan of the college’s leadership to sell the property and its highly valued water hookup.

Coon says the college plans to open up the lab to local schools and organizations to foster “the exploration of science” to all.

Equity and community access have been two benchmarks of his tenure. He has been personally involved in building and promoting these initiatives and their success reflects that active participation.

His continued community outreach has set a standard for the college. He expanded access to undergraduate-level classes for high school students and backed initiatives to create pathways to college for Marin students.

The college’s collaboration with the Rotary Club of Novato led to the construction of the Bill and Adele Jonas Center at IVC. The center has become a popular venue for community gatherings, large and small. The center and the world-class aquatics facility built at the same time next to it, bring life and interest to the campus that has had a history of struggles.

During Coon’s tenure the campus has grown to more than 4,200 students, with about 1,000 full-time students and more than 3,200 part-time. It has consistently ranked as having one of the highest transfer rates to the University of California at Berkeley.

Coon’s calm demeanor and reputation for being a good and responsive listener helped improve communication with college staff, including bringing peace to a sometimes strained relationship between faculty and administration.

Entering the job, he inherited the task for fulfilling the promises of the voter-approved 2004 Measure C capital bonds for repairs and renovations to the campuses. Its success led to Marin voters backing a second bond proposal, Measure B, in 2016.

Voter support of both bond measures reflected Marin residents’ pride in their community college and the important role it plays for its students, those planning to transfer to four-year universities, those seeking career-focused courses and continued and re-entry education for many others.

Coon also built a strong administration, of which Eldridge has been a key leader, having served as vice president for over 10 years.

Eldridge, a San Rafael resident, leads both the academic and student services divisions, heading up some of the school’s recent advancements in meeting growing educational needs and challenges. He has also been key to new partnerships with nonprofits.

David Wain Coon and his team have been transformational with the campus renovations and tops-in-state rankings for equity and opportunity. Eldridge has been part of all of those improvements and milestones.

Eldridge is the right fit for the job and a candidate who reflects the building of the strong foundation that Coon leaves when he officially retires at the end of this year.