Mays

Tammy Mays received a 2007 Spectrum Doctoral Fellowship and is pursuing her degree at the University of Wisconsin - Madison.  Tammy holds an M.L.I.S. from the School of Library and Information Science, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a B.A. in Biology from Fisk University.

With the Ph.D., Tammy hopes to enhance her policy management skills, and gain a greater degree of expertise in the impact of information and information technology on individuals, organizations, and society.Tammy's aspiration is to combine both her undergraduate and graduate degrees in a science-related environment. Working in the field of health science librarianship enabled her to use those degrees in an applied setting and she believes that a Ph.D. in library and information science will strengthen this foundation.  Tammy is specifically interested in research questions that arise from two trends that have the potential to radically reshape the way we think and work: (1) The Internet has propelled the consumer health movement to the forefront of libraries and (2) The challenges librarians face to improve health literacy by promoting well-written, easy to read, reliable, quality health information. Tammy believes there is a great need for research in consumer health information user needs and behaviors and is excited that the field offers unlimited opportunities.