Most home-based child care is run by people over 50. Who is going to replace them?

A growing share of home-based child care providers are over 50, raising concerns about the future of this essential but aging workforce. Many, like Sylvia Crews, have spent decades in early childhood education, often running their own licensed centers after years of experience. With fewer younger caregivers entering the field, the sustainability of these home-based programs—critical for working families—faces long-term uncertainty. The trend highlights a broader challenge in maintaining reliable child care options as the current generation of providers approaches retirement.

For over 20 years, Sylvia Crews has worked in early childhood education, spending the last decade running her own home-based center. After buying a home in Washington, D.C., in 2015, she launched LTH Infants and Toddlers Center — an abbreviation for “loving, tender home” — shortly after. She is licensed to care for up to […] The post Most home-based child care is run by people over 50. Who is going to replace them? appeared first on The Hechinger Report.