The number of child care providers in Wicomico County fell 15.27% between Jan. 1, 2020, and Jan. 1, 2024. That’s the seventh smallest decrease in the state.
Meanwhile, the number of child care slots in Wicomico County decreased from 3,911 on Jan. 1, 2020, to 3,262 on Jan. 1, 2024. That’s a 16.59% decrease, the third largest in the state.
The number of top-rated child care facilities -- those with a rating of 5 on the state's EXCELS rating system -- in the county fell from 18 in early 2020 to 14 early this year.
Here’s what Brittany Truitt of A Step Ahead Learning in Salisbury had to say about the child care situation in Wicomico County:
"A lot of families will tell me they've been on waitlists (at child care facilities) for over a year. So yeah, it's definitely a shortage in this county."
– Cinthya Roque