The Trump administration has made it clear their goal is to dismantle the Department of Education entirely, and that is causing a lot of concern and fear among educators in Illinois.

With nearly half of the federal employees from the U.S. Department of Education laid off this week and the Trump administration vowing to close the department altogether, there are potential impacts to Illinois cities and schools.

Concern about the funds is growing now that staffing at the agency has been cut by nearly 50% — from 4,133 to 2,183.

The 135,000 member Illinois Education Association (IEA-NEA) is the state’s largest union. IEA represents Pre K-12 teachers outside the city of Chicago and education support staff, higher education faculty, retired education employees and students preparing to become teachers, statewide.

Trump is moving to cut the staff by half and dismantle the department. He’s also going after DEI in higher education and funding for research.

Dan Montgomery, president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers, along with more than 1,000 teachers and Gov. JB Pritzker will be on hand to address the federal cuts.

Governor JB Pritzker spoke to dozens of Illinois educators Thursday morning in Rosemont for the kick-off of a three-day conference.

Gov. JB Pritzker spoke to educators from around the state on Thursday at the Illinois Education Association Representative Assembly, saying they're "ready to fight" after the Trump administration began cuts to the U.