The number of child care providers in St. Mary's County fell 27.45% between Jan. 1, 2020, and Jan. 1, 2024. That’s the largest decrease in the state.
Meanwhile, the number of child care slots in St. Mary's County decreased from 3,432 on Jan. 1, 2020, to 2,913 on Jan. 1, 2024. That’s a 15.12% decrease — the fourth largest in the state.
Here's what Bridgette Lawrence, a licenced home child care provider in California, MD -- in St. Mary's County -- had to say about the child care situation there:
"I believe that the number of home-based child care providers...has dropped significantly for two main reasons since 2020. The first reason was the onset of the COVID pandemic, when, just like people from all walks of life and types of employment, child care workers were fearful for their safety and health, and that of their familles. They opted to take a break from providing care, retired completely from the field,\ or switched to another career opportunity. Financial stability was tenuous for so many during this time and they had to support their families in whatever way possible. The decline in the number of available providers over that period hasn’t yet rebounded to the pre-pandemic numbers and therefore there is a gap between the number of child care spaces needed and the number of spaces available to meet those needs. The second reason for the lack of available child care, in my opinion, has to do with the increased expectations of providers from state-level agencies without the continued, appropriate support to meet these expectations. These state level agencies want to increase the standards for care, but continually do away with the support systems that are designed to assist providers in reaching those raised standards."
-- Jenna Bloom and Jerry Zremski