Tara was born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina. She was a determined child, starting dance lessons at age 2, and learning to read at age 3. She grew up unsure of whether she wanted to be a medical doctor or a performing artist. Her mother was a science teacher with a passion for visual art, and her father was a soil and water conservationist with a semi-professional career as a violist. Needless to say, Tara was supported on both paths; thus was born her nickname "Doc Hollywood." After years of community theatre, dance lessons, voice lessons, and being crowned Miss United States Teen, Tara pursued a B.A. in Music at the College of Charleston, SC on a full academic and music scholarship. After her Sophomore year, she was pre-accepted to medical school at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. During her Senior year, she landed a co-star on an episode of Dawson's Creek. After a week on the set of a network series, she saw that she really liked the biz. She decided to defer her medical school for a couple years. Off to New York City she flew to pursue a career in acting. And she never looked back. Tara now resides in Burbank with her husband Blaise Fitzgerald and their two children Aubrey Elaine Fitzgerald and Gannon Grayson Fitzgerald.