The Herkimer County Community College campus is quiet because many classes are online, and that's an adjustment some students are having difficulty adapting to. So the Herkimer County College Foundation is stepping in to help.

"You can't deny that what they're being asked to do, whether it be the administrators and the teachers and the professors, or whether it be the students, this is just really hard. It's just really hard and difficult for everybody," said Herkimer County College Foundation Executive Director Rob Fowler.

The Herkimer County College Foundation is offering eligible current full-time students up to $500 to help with their now-virtual education. The grant program is called the HCCF Assists Initiative. The money could be for a new laptop or even to help with travel, as some students are reportedly parking in the college's parking lot to use the internet.

"... But your car needs an oil change or you can't drive it up there to get on the wifi to complete the class, well then we want to help you," Fowler said. "It literally can go that deep and be that convoluted of a situation, but really, those situations do exist."

Students interested in applying can do so here. The initiative may continue even after this pandemic passes, but it's unclear what Herkimer's fall semester will look like.

"There could be the possibility of continuing to offer classes in alternative modes. There could be a possibility of a combination or a hybrid type of model, and that requires a lot of planning. So we've been working on that now," said Herkimer County Community College Public Relations Director Rebecca Ruffing.