Pictured: Melody Hardin, Virginia B. Toulmin Leadership Scholarship Award Recipient. Provided photo.

Marie Selby Botanical Gardens is excited to announce Melody Hardin of Parrish, Florida, as the recipient of the 2026 Virginia B. Toulmin Leadership Scholarship. Ms. Hardin is a junior at the University of South Florida in Tampa, Florida, where she is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications. She is also a student at Judy Genshaft Honors College. The Virginia B. Toulmin Scholarship is awarded in honor of and in partnership with a local leader in the Sarasota community – and that distinction has been bestowed upon Selby Gardens' President and CEO, Jennifer O. Rominiecki, who served as the scholarship's inaugural mentor during the 2024 award cycle and again in 2025 and 2026.

Pictured: Melody Hardin, Virginia B. Toulmin Leadership Scholarship Award Recipient. Provided photo.