About Wood Badge for the 21st Century

Wood Badge is for all Scouters: Cub Scout leaders, Boy Scout leaders, Varsity leaders, Venturing leaders, and council and district leaders. The focus is on leadership skills, not outdoor skills. The first part of the Wood Badge course reflects unit meetings, while the second part of the course uses a troop camping activity as its delivery model.

Wood Badge for the 21st century is based around five central themes:

Living the Values
Values, mission, and vision

Bringing the Vision to Life
Listening to learn
Communicating
Inclusiveness
Valuing people and leveraging diversity
Coaching and mentoring

Models for Success
Stages of team development
The Leading EDGE / The Teaching EDGE

Tools of the Trade
Project planning
Leading change
Problem solving and decision making
Managing conflict
Self-assessment

Leading to Make a Difference
Leaving a legacy

Incorporating leadership concepts that are used in corporate America, the course teaches participants the basics of listening, communicating, valuing people, team development, situational leadership, problem solving, and managing conflict. Once the skill is learned, each participant is given the opportunity to use the skill as a member of a successful working team. At the conclusion of the course, each participant develops a set of personal goals related to his or her Scouting role. Working toward these goals allows each participant to practice and demonstrate new skills.

As a result of attending Wood Badge, participants will be able to

• View Scouting globally, as a family of interrelated, values-based programs that provide age-appropriate activities for youth.
• Recognize the contemporary leadership concepts utilized in corporate America and leading government organizations that are relevant to our values-based movement.
• Apply the skills they learn from their participation as a member of a successful working team.
• Revitalize their commitment by sharing in an overall inspirational experience that helps provide Scouting with the leadership it needs to accomplish its mission on an ongoing basis.

"The spirit is everything. Once that is developed, everything comes easy; without it, success in training (the boys) is practically impossible."

-- Lord Baden-Powell