Well, the federal Department of Education is on the Trump administration's chopping block.

The agency oversees student loans, federal funds for lower income students, and special education programs, among other things.

While exact details of the president's plan are unclear, Trump has said it would be a cost savings to taxpayers and give states more local control.

But many education leaders in new Jersey and elsewhere are on edge about the move and what it will mean for students holding an event in Newark today to push back on the proposal as part of a national day of action.

Senior correspondent Joanna Gagis reports.

The Trump administration calls this funding wasted taxpayer dollars.

We call it life sustaining.

This morning, union leaders from Education and Health care gathered in front of a public school in Newark calling on Congress not to approve proposed federal cuts to Medicaid or funding for new Jersey schools.

We, in turn, are calling on Congress to stop these cuts and our New Jersey legislators to do everything they can to protect the kids of New Jersey.

The education sector is watching with great concern to see if the Department of Education will be dismantled.

A campaign promise made by President Trump to put education policy in the hands of the states, potentially stripping new Jersey schools of several funding sources like grants under title one, two, three and four, as well as Idea funding the individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

That plays a critical role in supporting our most vulnerable populations, such as students with disabilities.

E-Rate funding that supports technology and library initiatives.

National breakfast and school lunch funding, which is important because most of our kids receive their first meal in school.

Providing crucial programs like helping high poverty students and supporting school improvement under title one, enhancing school safety, boosting literacy development, expanding pre-kindergarten access, funding community schools, and addressing the needs of our most underserved students, including homeless and migrant students, students with disabilities and multilingual learners.

But losing title one funding alone could decimate New Jersey's education funding model.

The state of new Jersey receives over $1 billion annually and federal funding from the U.S. Department of Education.

The majority of that goes to provide services to the most vulnerable children we serve.

New Jersey's Attorney General Matt Platkin, received a notice a few weeks ago from the U.S. Department of Education, saying that any school district with a D-ii program could stand to lose its title one funding.

But there's been no further guidance since then to indicate what those programs are that could lead to those cuts.

The number of students impacted by title one funding being cut is over half a million.

That's 556,000 students in the state.

If that funding goes away, what does that mean for districts?

Is that layoffs?

Is that slashing programs?

Well, there are mandates through the individuals with disability education Act.

So the district would have to fund those mandates, and they would make cuts elsewhere to meet that legal obligation from the federal government.

One of the big questions is if the Department of Education ends up getting disbanded.

How is Idea enforced anymore?

That's a really good question.

The state has its own laws and expectations.

I think many conversations will had to be had with legislators in Trenton, as well as leaders and, Board of Ed across the state and municipalities on how they're going to raise the money to make up the difference, to serve the students.

But as the New Jersey president, Jennifer Higgins, told the crowd today, it's not just education funds that could impact students.

Medicaid cuts could also be devastating.

Almost 2 million New Jerseyans are enrolled in Medicaid.

Of that figure, 1 in 3 children and 1 in 3 children with disabilities are on Medicaid.

School based Medicaid programs serve as a lifeline to children who can't access critical health care and health services outside of the school setting.

The students in this building are not going to get the services that take them from from from five years old to 21 years old.

And when they leave here, for the most part, they're they're trainable and they end up working back in the economy.

If this happens, we'll see a society that is spiraling downward very fast, not an economy that's growing.

For now, the future of education remains totally uncertain.

In Newark, I'm Joanna Gagis, NJ spotlight News.