SAN RAMON, CA—Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) announced Edda Collins Coleman as her 2026 Woman of the Year. A fellow Orinda parent, school board member, and vice president of communications at Common Sense Media, Collins Coleman is an instrumental advocate for children’s online safety in California, turning personal conviction into statewide law.
“Edda is someone I’m proud to both work with and call a friend,” said Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan. “She’s not just fighting for kids in the abstract: She’s a mom here in Orinda, she sits on our school board, and she shows up every single day for the children in this community and across the state. Her work helped turn the conversation about children’s online safety into real, enforceable California law. It is my honor to name her my Woman of the Year.”
Collins Coleman has been a tireless force in the movement to make the digital world safer for children, bringing together her roles as a parent, a community leader, and a communications executive to amplify the urgency of protecting kids online. Her work with Common Sense Media reflects a shared belief that California must lead on children’s safety in the digital age, from social media accountability to the emerging risks posed by AI. During her time as a member of the Orinda Union School District Board, she worked to ensure that the Wagner Ranch Nature Area would be preserved and remain accessible for children to enjoy for decades to come.
“I am deeply honored to be named Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan’s Woman of the Year, and even more grateful to work alongside someone I am proud to call a friend. Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan has been an unstoppable partner in Common Sense Media’s mission to protect and prepare kids online, and her dedication to California’s young people is as fierce as it is genuine. As a mom of three in Orinda, I see every day how much the digital world shapes our children’s lives. That is what drives this work: not policy for policy’s sake, but the real kids behind the screens, in our schools, in our neighborhoods, in our homes. When parents, caregivers, educators, and lawmakers come together, we can build the digital future our kids deserve. I am grateful to everyone in this community who has made that mission feel possible” said Edda Collins Coleman.
About Edda Collins Coleman
Edda Collins Coleman is immediate past board president of the Orinda Union School District and vice president of communications at Common Sense Media, where she serves on the executive leadership team and leads the organization’s global communications strategy on ethical AI, tech policy, and children’s safety. As an Orinda parent of three, her advocacy is as personal as it is professional. Her career spans senior roles across government, health care, and public affairs—including work for former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board. She also served for a decade as a bipartisan gubernatorial appointee to the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth, appointed by three governors.