Dr. Dunavant is an Alabama native and the son of a dentist. He earned his B.S. Degree in Biochemistry from Auburn University in 1978. He earned his D.D.S. Degree with honors from the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry in1984. He completed a General Practice Residency at the Naval Hospital, San Diego, California in 1985 and practiced general dentistry in the U.S. Navy until 1991. He has given presentations on various topics to the California, Hawaii and Tennessee Dental Associations. He was Infection Control officer at his last two commands. He has been awarded Master Academy of General Dentistry and Fellow International Congress of Oral Implantologists.
Past and present personal pursuits include finishing the 1995 Hawaii Tinman Triathalon, competing in 5 USA Volleyball National Championships and coaching juniors club volleyball, compiling and teaching a study on early church history titled From Cross To Canon, participating in Mexicali Missions to repair cleft lip and palate, Baldwin County Hope Center Missions.