student uses chalk on the sidewalk
Students from Dr. Kim Davies’s Sociology of Murder class chalk the sidewalks outside Allgood Hall to represent the 21,570 murders that occurred in 2020 in the U.S. [Michael Holahan/Augusta University]

Students provide visual representation of US murder rate

Janell Williams2 min readSeptember 6, 2022

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, homicide rates have increased over 30% in the United States. Augusta University Dean of Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, Dr. Kim Davies, and students in her Sociology of Murder class have taken to the sidewalk each semester to highlight a visual representation of these tragedies.

On Wednesday, Aug. 31, Davies’s students grabbed their chalk and filled the Allgood Hall sidewalk with tally marks to illustrate the number of homicides in 2020. In total, there were 21,570 marks.

“I never had the sense that students — or myself for that matter — really understood how much murder there really is in the United States,” said Davies. “So several years ago, I decided to follow advice I gave to others using my textbook on murder and I started doing an activity that makes the numbers more real for my class and for those in our community.”

“I never had the sense that students — or myself for that matter — really understood how much murder there really is in the United States,” said Davies. “So several years ago, I decided to follow advice I gave to others using my textbook on murder and I started doing an activity that makes the numbers more real for my class and for those in our community.”

Students who are not enrolled in the course were also encouraged to participate in the activity.

Woman sitting
Dean Kim Davies

“I tell students that part of their participation grade is based on their interaction with other students. I direct them to be ready to explain to students and others out in the campus what we were doing and why.”

This activity has become a tradition for Davies and her students as they continue to examine and bring awareness to the rising crime rate in America.

“I always emphasize that the students should think about how many people were impacted by these murders and that we should think about not only the victim and all of those who loved and knew the victim, but also about the murderer and those in his or her family that may have been impacted by the murder.”

students use chalk on the sidewalk
Students from Kim Davies’s Sociology of Murder class chalk the sidewalks outside Allgood Hall to note the number of murders in 2020 in the U.S. [Photos by Michael Holahan/Augusta University]
student uses chalk on the sidewalk
students use chalk on the sidewalk
student uses chalk on the sidewalk
students use chalk on the sidewalk
chalk hashmarks on the sidewalk
chalk hashmarks on the sidewalk
student uses chalk on the sidewalk
students use chalk out the sidewalk
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Janell Williams

Janell Williams is a media relations intern for Communications & Marketing. She is a senior communication major at Augusta University.

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