Donghua Tao, librarian faculty at the Medical Center Library, Saint Louis University and graduate student at the University of Missouri - Columbia School of Information Science & Learning Technology (SISLT), has been awarded the 2008 Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship for her proposal, “Using Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) in Understanding Selection and Use of Information Resources: An Information Resource Selection and Use Model.”
The fellowship, sponsored by Thomson Scientific, fosters research in academic librarianship by encouraging and supporting dissertation research. The award of $1,500 and a plaque will be presented at the 2008 American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Anaheim, Calif., during the ACRL President’s Program at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, June 30.
“Ms. Tao’s proposal is clearly significant to academic librarians, as she is looking at how students intend to use information resources in conjunction with how they actually use those resources,” said Nancy H. Seamans, chair of the selection committee and associate university librarian and director of research and instructional services at the University of Iowa.
Assistant Provost for University Libraries at Saint Louis University Dr. Gail M. Staines says, “Donghua’s research is critical to our understanding of how today’s students and future workers locate and use information. This is a highly competitive award and we are so proud that her research in this area is being recognized.”
Tao received her Bachelor of Medical Science in Medical Library and Information Sciences from the China Medical University in Shenyang, China. She earned her Master of Arts in Library Science with a specialty in Medical Librarianship from the University of Missouri - Columbia SISLT, where she is currently pursuing her Master of Science in Health Informatics and her Ph.D. in Information Science.
