Wood Badge is for the adult leaders in Scouting America. Similar corporate courses cost thousands of dollars per attendee. Wood Badge is a modern format of training that delivers the latest in 12 leadership skills that will help you be the best leader possible. These are skills that will become part of your everyday life. You will use these skills at home, church, and anywhere leadership is needed. The course is made to provide the highest quality course with the most experienced staff to a diverse audience. We promise you friendship, camaraderie, knowledge, personal awareness, and most of all fun!
What do we see on course?
We do many things on course, like:
- Listening
- Managing conflict
- Leading change
- Stages of team development
- Coaching & Mentoring
- Leadership for different stages
- Servant leadership
- Project planning
- And more!
These come to you in presentations, games, discussions, activities, and other methods.
Why do you want to go?
You want to participate in a Wood Badge course because of things you will learn and do. Here are some of the benefits:
- Stronger units. You will make your Scouting unit — and your sons’ and daughters’ units — stronger.
- What and why of Scouting. You will have a deeper understanding of what Scouting is and why we do it.
- Experience. You will learn and experience things that will stay with you in Scouting and the rest of your life.
- Fun. You will have fun and you will meet interesting people.
- Other groups. You will make your other groups, like work, church, even family, stronger.
Wood Badge is here for you. This is not a Troop leader training but is designed for Cub, Scout, and Venturing leaders. This course will help you better understand how all the Scouting programs tie together. It will provide you with many useful leadership tools to help enable our youth to have the best possible Scouting experience. There is no better time to attend a Wood Badge course and make a difference in your unit than when you are a Cub Scout Leader.
Tickets
Have you heard of “The Ticket” and wondered what it is? The ticket is a group of five goals you set for yourself to do after course, to improve your unit. You learn more about this on the course.
Purpose of Wood Badge
- The purpose of Wood Badge is to develop skilled leaders who can strengthen Scouting units in achieving the mission of Scouting America.
- When we accomplish the mission of Scouting, we do it in the units. Therefore, the short form of the purpose is, the purpose of Wood Badge is to strengthen units.
- Although the course is different today, what Baden-Powell said in 1919 still applies:
- One of the purposes of Wood Badge training is to get Scouters to think about the practice of Scouting, to meet together, to exchange experiences, and to live together in the spirit of the Scout Oath.
More information
2026 Course
Our next Wood Badge Course is in September 2026 at the Lake of the Ozarks Scout Reservation. Attendance at both weekends is required.
Past Course Directors
1973 – NC-10
1974 – NC-22
1975 – NC-303
1976 – NC-318
1977 – NC-331
1978 – NC-342
1979 – NC-351
1980 – NC-500
1981 – NC-503
1982 – NC-363
1983 – NC-514
1984 – NC-374
1985 – NC-518
1986 – NC-381
1987 – NC-523
1988 – NC-530
1989 – NC-532
1990 – NC-539
1991 – NC-542
1992 – NC-545
1993
1994 – C-39-94
1995 – C-24-95
1996 – C-32-96
1997 – C-6-97
1998 – C-26-98
1999 – C-28-99
2000 – C-28-00
2001 – C-35-01
2002 – C-37-02
2003 – C-33-03
2004 – C-40-04
2005 – C-47-05
2006 – C-41-06
2007 – C-41-07
2008 – C-07-08
2009 – C-41-09
2010 – C-34-10
2011 – C5-653-11
2012
2013 – C5-653-13
2014 – C5-653-14
2015 – C5-653-15
2016
2017 – C5-653-17
2018
2019 – C5-653-19
2020 – C5-653-20
2021
2022 – 5-653-22
2023 – 5-653-23
2024
2025 – 5-653-25
Vance Tuttle
C. Robert Weimer
Robert Simmens
Gerald Rupert
Zeke Secora
James Buckley
Robert Osman
Robert Osman
Dale Abernathy
Donald Goss
Tom Holt
Kyle Kittrell
Arthur Rhodes
John Saunders
Paul White
Arthur Rhodes
James Thorne
David Harris
Marion Rowe
Ed Brooks
NO COURSE
James Evers
James D. Maupin
Joe Sestak
George Kopp
Dian Pryor
Jerry Couchman
Bob Pryor
Charles Hayes
Rich Schulz
Chris Wrigley
Joe Essen
Jim Lachner
Mike Zysk
Evie White
Frank Rieger
Ray Legg
Cheryl Cobb
NO COURSE
Diann Stelzer
Todd Bennett
Les Wegener
NO COURSE
Lisa Wehmeyer
NO COURSE
Jeff Goran
Wess Diehl
NO COURSE
Chris Doyle
Jon Barfknecht
NO COURSE
Mike Azar
