The first Wood Badge course was presented in England by the founder of Scouting, Baden-Powell, and he introduced the program into the United States during a visit in 1936.

The program originally focused almost exclusively on Scoutcraft skills, some elements of the Patrol Method, and First Class Boy Scout requirements.

The National Council has updated it several times since then, and during 2001–2002 implemented an overhaul that emphasized a prototypical troop as a method for teaching team leadership and problem-solving skills.

Francis Gidney, the first camp chief of Gilwell Park, came to the United States in 1922 at the instigation of Walter W. Head, a member of the Boy Scouts of America National Board, and later its President.

Though the national training department approved a "Gillwill Training Camp" to be held at Camp Parsons in 1929 (conducted by John A. Stiles, the Chief Scout Executive of Canada),[1]: 3  the prevailing attitude of the Boy Scouts of America was that American men would not set aside eight days from their busy lives to attend the course.

He met with James E. West, Scouting's founder Baden Powell, and his aide, Gilwell Park's second camp chief John Skinner Wilson.

[a] After the war ended, new Gilwell Park camp chief John Thurman was interested in persuading the Boy Scouts of America to adapt Wood Badge.

[a] Hillcourt had received his Wood Badge beads in 1939, making him the only national staff member eligible to serve as course Scoutmaster.

"[3] The four men elected to include in the course all of the recently updated basic Boy Scout requirements for Tenderfoot to First Class, along with information on patrol work covered in the Handbook for Patrol Leaders (authored by Hillcourt) and troop organization and activities described in the Handbook for Scoutmasters (also written by Hillcourt).

[a] Qualified local councils continued to provide advanced leadership training to Scoutmasters and other Scout leaders using Wood Badge.

However, the majority of Wood Badge courses are held throughout the country at local council camps under the auspices of each BSA region.

The Wood Badge program originally focused exclusively on teaching Scoutcraft skills, the Patrol Method and First Class Scouting requirements.

With the active interest and support of the Monterey Bay Area Council executive staff and board, Bela continually improved his experimental program.

In November 1963, Dr. John W. Larson, a staff researcher for the National Council, observed the program's annual Indaba at the Presidio of Monterey.

[a] The program had until this time taught the adults the same Scoutcraft skills a boy was required to learn to become a First Class Scout along with concepts of the patrol method.

[7] In February 1966, Brunton appointed seven men to a National task force to lead the effort: Robert L. Calvert, head of the BSA Education Division, was chair of the committee composed of A. Warren Holm, John Larson, William E. Lawrence, Ben H. Love, Kenneth Wells, and Joseph W. Wyckoff.

Their plan identified Wood Badge and senior patrol leader training as the best opportunities for providing leadership education within the BSA.

[a] In January 1967, John Larson, along with Bob Perin, Assistant National Director of Volunteer Training, were tasked with working with Dr. Bánáthy to write a new Wood Badge staff guide focusing on the White Stag leadership competencies.

One month later, on July 18, the Circle Ten Council presented its first new Wood Badge program at Philmont, while Bob Perin and John Larson watched from the sidelines.

In September 1967, after the program was revised, William E. Lawrence, director of the Volunteer Training Service, named six councils who would pilot-test the next phase of the experimental Wood Badge courses during 1968.

In an application not since reproduced, all Wood Badge attendees were also asked to bring their troop to a single week of White Stag summer camp in August.

Joe St. Clair served as Scoutmaster, Bánáthy was course director, and Fran Petersen was Senior Patrol Leader.

The following August, boys from the troops of the Scoutmasters who attended Wood Badge went to the White Stag Leadership Development Program summer camp.

During 1969, Gene Rutherford of the Circle Ten Council along with the Course Directors from the pilot programs—Crawford, Stevens, Whisler and Carl Marlowe of the Hiawatha Councils—were charged with evaluating the project.

In 1978 the National Council decided in a half-step backwards that Wood Badge needed to place greater emphasis on the practical aspects of good troop operation along with a variety of leadership exercises.

[16] In 1994, the National Council revised the course content again to add key concepts based on Ethics in Action which had been added to Boy Scout training and literature.

The leadership competencies remained an essential part of Wood Badge until 1998,[11] when the National Council revised it again to use the unit meeting and a troop camping activity as a delivery model.

[20] The Wood Badge Task Force decided to describe how groups change and evolve using more generic, non-trademarked language free of royalties.

[7] Session titles include Leading Change, Problem Solving, Valuing People and Leveraging Diversity, Managing Conflict, and Coaching and Mentoring.

It includes inspirational excerpts from the movie Mr. Holland's Opus and from a John Prine song "Hello in There", sung by Bette Midler.