David M. Coit Elected Chair of Bigelow Laboratory Board of Trustees
The members of the Board of Trustees of Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences have elected David M. Coit of Cape Elizabeth, Maine as their new Chair, succeeding Donna Lee Cheney, who had served two terms as the Board’s Chair. (12/01/2008)
WEST BOOTHBAY HARBOR, ME – The members of the Board of Trustees of Bigelow Laboratory have elected David M. Coit of Cape Elizabeth, Maine as their new Chair, succeeding Donna Lee Cheney, who had served two terms as the Board’s Chair. Coit has been a Trustee of Bigelow Laboratory since 2005. He is the founder and Senior Managing Director of North Atlantic Capital Corporation in Portland, Maine, a private equity firm focused on investing in high growth technology companies throughout the eastern United States.
“One of my goals as Board Chair will be to work with Executive Director, Dr. Graham Shimmield, and the other board members to support the work of the laboratory’s team of world class scientists” Coit said. “Bigelow Laboratory is embarking on the execution of an ambitious new strategic plan to augment the resources necessary to keep the laboratory among the most respected organizations in the scientific community for its global work in microbial oceanographic science research.”
Coit’s other nonprofit board activities include the Schepens Eye Research Institute (an affiliate of the Harvard Medical School), Common Good Ventures and the Maine Community Foundation. He is a past Chairman of the Board of Governors of the National Association of Small Business Investment Companies and of the Maine Science & Technology Foundation. A former U.S. Naval Officer, he graduated from YaleUniversity with a B.A. degree in Economics and received an MBA from Harvard Business School.
“I’m very happy to have the opportunity to work with David,” said Shimmield. “His wealth of experience and knowledge will be invaluable to Bigelow Laboratory’s growth and success as we begin a new phase in our development.”
An independent center for global ocean research, the focus of study at Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences ranges from microbial oceanography -- examining the biology of the world’s oceans at the molecular level -- to the large-scale biogeochemical processes that drive interactions between ocean ecosystems and global environmental conditions. These projects have taken Bigelow scientists around the world to every ocean and the polar seas. The Laboratory is a private, nonprofit research institution supported by federal research grants and private funds. ###