LEXINGTON, Ky. — A University of Kentucky professor is taking a few extra steps to protect himself from catching COVID-19.

And by a few, we mean 17 flights of stairs.

What You Need To Know

  • One UK History professor protects himself from COVID-19 in a unique way

  • Prof. Mark Summers climbs 17 flights of stairs to avoid using the elevator

  • The 70-year-old says reading helps pass the time during the climb

  • Summers teaches American History at UK

There’s not a single boring lesson taught in Mark Summers' American History course.

Students in Professor Summers' class know the topic they’re learning will come with some passion, entertainment, and even attention-grabbing jump on a table to learn about grains.

“Let's start with the reaper if we can, see what we can do right there in terms of tinkering and importance in that kind of thing. If you want an invention out there, let’s talk about grain. OK? Let's see if we can talk about grain a little bit. If you are trying to grow wheat, you know perfectly well that wheat, when it gets ripe, is only going to be fit for mowing for about two weeks,” Summers said as he lectured to an auditorium full of students while standing on a table.

Mark Summers teaches a classroom of students in the auditorium at UK. At one point during the lecture, he stood on a table to drive his point across. (Spectrum News 1/Khyati Patel)

But after each class in one building, Professor Summers marches to the next building for office hours, climbing a sizable number of stairs.

“Not by very much, I'll get over it. It usually happens that I'm a little out of breath but I recover,” Summers said.

The 70-year-old climbs up and down 17 flights, some days two or three times a day depending on his class schedule.

“I'm not all that comfortable about being on elevators in the age of COVID. People's breath, the droplets and so on linger in the atmosphere an awful long time and I'd much rather not end up with COVID,” Summers said.

This isn’t new for Professor Summers. He’s been climbing for a while, but the pandemic shifted his decision-making, putting safety at the forefront.

“I can usually go down the stairs in about maybe two and a half minutes and I don’t think I could ever get down the elevator that fast in between classes,” Summers said.

His tip? Take some reading material.

“I mean if you begin to look at the numbers on the staircases 2, 3, 4, you’re lost. You’re going to be dead by the time you get up there so you don’t look at the numbers,” Summers said.

Climbing the stairs doesn't just protect him from COVID-19 — it's also a great way to stay in shape.

The history professor has been teaching for nearly four decades at the University of Kentucky.