After this story ran, the Ministry of Citizenship and Multiculturalism confirmed that two BYAP streams, Student and Family Advocates (SFA) and Innovative Supports for Black Parents (ISBP), have been approved for 2026–27. It also admitted the original funding notices were sent in error, which is how 22 organizations ended up blindsided on a Friday afternoon in the first place. A third stream, Economic Empowerment, including the Career Advance program, is still unresolved. We’re watching.
On March 27, 2026, Debbie Miles-Senior, Executive Director of the Durham Family and Cultural Centre, received a Friday-afternoon Zoom call from her provincial project lead.
"Did you not get the letter?" the lead asked. Miles-Senior checked her inbox. Nothing. Then her junk folder. There it was: a notification sent at 2:15 p.m. on a Friday, informing her organization that its funding had been cut. No transition plan. No consultation. No warning.
"I lost my mind," Miles-Senior says, plainly. "I was really angry."
She wasn't alone. Across Ontario, 22 Black-led organizations received the same news through the same broken system. Some didn't receive the letter at all. At stake were Student and Family Advocate (SFA) roles embedded in schools, wraparound family programs funded through the Innovative Solutions for Black Parents (ISBP) stream, and years of community trust that no government review can replicate. The government's explanation for the delivery failure? A glitch.
"If you had a glitch in your system, wouldn't it flag that all 22 agencies did not receive your letter?" Miles-Senior asks. "So, you need to fix it."
