In France, the name Myles originates from the Norman French word Miles, meaning “soldier”, which relates to Myles Dunson because like soldiers do, Myles has always gone out of his way to help others. What is the France correlation? Invite Myles out to his favorite way to pass time- going to the movie theater. He may reveal the random french phrases he remembers from his six years of taking French classes in school.
My first day of class fellow Mayor, Myles, was born in Nashville, Tennessee where he lived with his mom, dad, and big sister up until the 6th grade. Three out of the four Dunsons packed up and moved down to the peach state, to a town outside of Atlanta. Myles’ dad stayed in Nashville to continue working. Growing up an athlete, Myles shined in multiple sports, soccer, baseball, basketball, wrestling, but it was football and track and field that Myles excelled in. Friday night lights remain a peak memory for Myles, not only from the joy of being a part of a team, but because those were the nights the Dunson family were all together again. There was never a game that Mr. Dunson would miss, he drove every weekend to watch Myles play. Whether it was on the field or at the dinner table, Mr. Dunson can see his children’s next move. Mr. Dunson saw Myles’ deep passion for sports and gift of writing way before Myles discovered it.
Then, it was during high school football when Myles went through three concussions and decided to venture onto a different path- the beautiful world of sports writing.
True to his sports teams, the Titans and Hawks lover bounced back to Tennessee where he attended Tennessee State University. In college, Myles stood out on a production crew, his talent of writing show rundowns shined through to his professors.
After graduation, Myles found himself back in Hawks territory where he landed his first writing gig. Although Myles was gaining tremendous writing experience pushing out 3 to 4 articles a day, around 250 articles at the end of the month, the gossip-heavy work did not feel right to him. It was not long after leaving his previous job when Myles Dunson discovered the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication and moved across the country to go after his dreams.
It was this past semester, Myles felt that “yeah I am exactly where I am supposed to be” feeling when he was given a beat and was able to cover his first game. Ironically, it just so happens to be one of the best high school football games Myles has ever witnessed, the score was 39 to 38, the team last second missed a two point conversion to lose the game. Like true Cronkite school fashion, Myles was thrown to the wolves without any experience, again like true Cronkite student fashion, Myles loved it.
It will always be a day Myles remembers as a pivotal moment in his career. As Myles sat in the stands in his black super tight shirt taking stats in the blazing Arizona heat, parents kept on assuming he was a recruiter, to which Myles replied, “Nope. I’m just a writer.”
