Recent moves by the U.S. government when it comes to education have local schools scrambling to come up with more cash just in case.

The fear is that federal grants could disappear next school year — leaving giant holes in school district budgets.

One district where that outcome is a concern is Lockport Township High School District 205. Lockport Township High School has about 3,000 students, and the school's budget of $68 million is mostly locally funded — only $2 million comes from federal grants.

But those $2 million are important — really helping prepare students for whatever is next in their lives.

"Most of the federal funding is going to students with special needs, students who are in a special education, and students are taking career technology education; students who are second language learners," said Lockport Township High School, District 205 Supt. Dr. Robert McBride.

Federal funding also supports college and career readiness and vocational programs that students say are invaluable. One such program is the L-Town Grounds coffee shop, which operates in the middle of the library at Lockport Township High School and is staffed by Ashley Goodrich.

Goodrich, who is graduating in a few months, starts at L-Town Grounds on the opening shift at 7 a.m. before classes. She credits the program with helping her become more confident and college ready.

 "I've become a lot more social," Goodrich said. "I have asked a lot of questions about like college, and like the teachers, they help me prepare a lot for it — so now I have all of my stuff done for college."

Down the hall and around the corner in the school, Abel Torrez is also ready to graduate. He is heading to trade school — having already learned how to wire a whole house in his building trades course.

"I want to be an electrician after school, and it kind of just narrowed it down for me and helped me explore different paths," Torrez said.

Federal funds also support the program that has made it possible for Torrez to learn his skills — and there are concerns that those funds soon might be gone.

After President Trump signed an executive order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, the school district took full stock of what happened.

"We have a plan B, a plan C," McBride said. "We have alternative funds to bring to bear without hurting our total district finances."

The district could dive into emergency funds, if necessary, to keep job training programs like the one Torrez is part of running.

McBride outlined what else is made possible by the federal grants.

"They bring in specialized machinery, they bring in specialized industry-level software, transportation, professional development for teachers," he said. "They bring all of those extras that we're able to then deliver to our students."

The programs made possible by the federal funding provide so much more to students than a standard high school education.

"This class gave me a lot of opportunity and made me connect with a lot of people," Torrez said of his building trades course. "It made me realize what I want to do after school, and it made me feel confident in that sense."