We heard from Survivor Communities that more time was needed to complete submissions carefully. Extending to November 28, 2025 ensures communities can ask questions, gather materials, and submit in a good way.
Yes. The extension applies to both Category 1 (Survivor Committee Establishment) and Category 2 (Community Program Funding).
Communities will be notified once decisions are made.
The Board will review all applications together in early 2026 to ensure fairness to all applicants in this first round of funding.
Survivor Applicant Groups and Survivor Communities have until the end of November 2025 to submit a funding request.
If you are having difficulty completing your forms, please email MDSSC at legacyfund@mdssc.ca.
If you have questions about your claim, please contact the Claims Administrator at 1-888-221-2898 or email indiandayschools@deloitte.ca or visit the website at www.indiandayschoolsclaims.com.
Yes, contact the MDSSC office at legacyfund@mdssc.ca.
Yes.
We heard from Survivor Communities that more time was needed to review the application package and complete submissions. The Board will review all applications together in early 2026 to ensure fairness to all applicants in this first round of funding. Communities will be notified once decisions are made.
If you’re having trouble getting a letter of support, please call or email MDSSC at legacyfund@mdssc.ca
Right now, we’re focussed on Round 1 of funding. We’ll share more information on Round 2 when it’s available.
Until we receive the funding applications, we won’t have an idea on the amount.
The voices of Survivors and their families are core to the work of the MDSSC and it was important to gather their input and feedback on how best to support their healing journey through the Legacy Fund.
To achieve that, we undertook a lengthy and wide-ranging engagement process. As a result, we developed a community-centered approach that we believe accurately reflects what we heard from Survivors.
Six (6) virtual Regional and National Outreach Sessions, were held between November 2021 and February 2022 as well as an online survey. In addition to the virtual regional/national engagement sessions, Survivors and families provided their input on the Legacy Fund by responding to a series of key questions which were available for on-line completion on the MDSSC website. Feedback stressed that funding should go directly to impacted communities, with support provided in the application process, and that it should be allocated promptly and used responsibly.
You can learn more about the board at www.mcleanlegacyfund.ca.
The Board will review the applications and make final decisions on funding.
Please provide any information you feel is important in your funding request. For additional information, contact the MDSSC at legacyfund@mdssc.ca
Funding will be provided in one payment on a yearly basis. For example, if a community is accepted for a three-year funding arrangement, they will receive one payment in year one, one payment in year two, and a final payment in year three.
It is the vision of the Board to give communities across the geography of Canada an equal opportunity for funding.
Part of that vision is to be mindful and thoughtfully share funding across communities, across geographies, across cultures.
The Board Members will recuse themselves if their home communities or any community with a perceived conflict of interest arises.
The Survivor Committee can do several things, including meeting with and consulting with Survivors on what programs best support their healing journey. In some communities the focus might be on healing and wellness, while in other communities’ commemoration may be important. In all cases, the Survivor Committee works with Indian Day School Survivors to understand what programs and support best serves their community.
Committees can take different forms, depending on the diverse needs of communities across the country.
To get started, a community can make a call out to their community Survivors to listen to their needs and what type of committee they would like. Some communities may need a support group for one-another, some communities may want a group to socialize and spend time together on the land, collecting medicines or other activities. Some communities may wish something more formal.
Start by listening to the Survivors and proceed from there.
A Survivor Committee might be very formal, as an established group of Survivors with rules for governance, meeting and accountability to the Survivor community.
In some cases, communities may have a less formal Survivor Applicant Group who want to come together to represent their community and start providing support. The $25,000 funding for Survivor Communities is intended to assist by paying for expenses associated with creating a committee such as honoraria for Elders, meeting expenses, facility space, rentals, refreshments, etc..
There is only one community per application. Each community will have to decide amongst themselves which Survivor Committee will be put forward for their community.
The funding is based on community, not on the number of schools. This means each Survivor Community may be eligible to request $25,000 to establish a Survivor Committee. If a community has more than one Indian Day School, the Survivor Committee should try to represent Survivors from all Schools.
The $25,000 funding for Survivor Communities is intended to assist by paying for Honoraria for Elders, meeting expenses, facility space, rentals, refreshments, or other expenses that are a barrier to establishment of a Survivor Committee.
No, however you can submit an application for funding under Category Two.
A Survivor Committee bank account is a requirement for funding. If you do not have an account, you must establish a bank account under the Survivor Committee name, and it must have 3 signing authorities.
Yes, a Survivor Applicant Group can apply for the $25,000 funding under Category 1 and Program funding under Category 2. However an existing Survivor Committee cannot apply for the $25,000 one-time funding.
There will be an Acceptance of Liability Form that must be signed by the Survivor Committee or the Survivor Applicant Group.
Program funding can be used for:
Delivery of services (for example, under the Healing and Wellness Pillar, funding can be used to hire experts or professionals to offer a healing program)
Schools Survivor Community. Specific criteria must be met by each Survivor Applicant Group or Survivor Community to request funding.
Only recognized Survivor Applicant Groups or Communities can request funding.
Only communities that had a Federal Indian Day School on the Reserve, listed in Schedule K of the Federal Indian Day Schools Settlement Agreement can apply for funding.
An individual Survivor, or a group of individuals, are not eligible for funding alone. They must be part of a Survivor Applicant Group or a Survivor Community.
A Survivor Applicant Group can only apply to one pillar of their choice in Round 1. There will be an opportunity to apply under another pillar in Round 2.
No. Day Scholars are not the same as people who attended Federal Indian Day Schools and are not part of the Settlement. Day Scholars, people who attended Federal Indian Residential Schools during the day, but did not sleep there overnight, are part of the Federal Indian Day Scholars Settlement at https://www.justicefordayscholars.com/. Day Scholars have their own Settlement and Revitalization Fund. Visit https://www.dsrsociety.ca/ to learn more.
