FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – The 166th Regiment – Regional Training Institute hosted a National Guard NCO Education Conference Feb. 10–12, bringing together leaders from across the Army’s noncommissioned officer professional military education enterprise to plan for sweeping changes to course length and curriculum, as well as to prepare to pilot the Army’s new 29-day Basic Leader Course.
Representatives from the National Guard Bureau, the U.S. Army Noncommissioned Officer Academy and 14 Regional Training Institutes nationwide met at Fort Indiantown Gap to synchronize implementation timelines, review draft programs of instruction and share best practices ahead of upcoming rollouts.
The conference placed the Pennsylvania Army National Guard at the forefront of those changes. The 166th Regiment Regional Training Institute will conduct the pilot course for the new 29-day Basic Leader Course beginning April 28.
“It’s about giving students more sets and reps,” said Sgt. Maj. Randall Austin, a Sergeant Major Academy instructor with the United States Army Noncommissioned Officer Academy. “With scenario-based evaluations there are no right or wrong answers. When Soldiers are in PME [Professional Military Education], that is the time for them to fail and have the opportunity to grow. Not fail the course, but fail specific tasks from which areas for improvement can be identified and they can receive constructive feedback. This is one example of things we’re aiming to improve on to better prepare Soldiers to be Army leaders.”
The revised Basic Leader Course is part of broader updates to the Army’s noncommissioned officer professional military education system affecting the Basic, Advanced, Senior and Master Leader Courses, as well as the Sergeants Major Academy.
The new Basic Leader Course program of instruction is expected to be published in late July. The program of instruction serves as the official curriculum and resource guide outlining what Soldiers must learn and how they are trained.
Under the updated structure, the Active Army’s Basic Leader Course will be conducted over five weeks using a six-day training week. For the Army National Guard and Army Reserve, the course will run 27.5 training days. The 166th Regiment Regional Training Institute’s pilot iteration will span 29 calendar days, approximately one week longer than the current 22-day Basic Leader Course format.
Master Sgt. James Webb, Basic Leader Course chief of training for the 166th Regional Training Institute, said the extended format adds depth and realism to the Army’s foundational noncommissioned officer course.
“The 29-day pilot introduces a dedicated situational training exercise where Soldiers will operate in realistic, high-pressure scenarios and execute battle drills like movement to contact and squad-level operations,” Webb said. “There’s also an expansion of our Leader Stakes from a single day to six days, which gives cadre more time to assess 10-level and 20-level warrior tasks and provide deliberate coaching. It’s about building confident and competent small-unit leaders.”
The new situational training exercise immerses students in scenario-based field training designed to sharpen tactical decision-making and leadership under stress. The expanded Leader Stakes event provides a more comprehensive assessment of a Soldier’s ability to lead small teams while performing warrior tasks and battle drills. The changes come as the Army National Guard continues to play a leading role in enlisted leader development, instructing approximately 73% of all Basic Leader Course students Army-wide.
Beyond the Basic Leader Course, additional adjustments are scheduled across the Professional Military Education enterprise. The 640th Regional Training Institute in Utah is slated to pilot the revised three-week Master Leader Course from May 28 to June 18. Advanced Leader Course and Senior Leader Course iterations at the 166th Regiment Regional Training Institute are expected to decrease in length by approximately one week beginning Oct. 1.
For the 166th Regional Training Institute, the longer Basic Leader Course will mean fewer annual iterations. The institute currently conducts 11 Basic Leader Course cycles per year, but will adjust to eight cycles annually once the extended Basic Leader Course schedule is implemented.
Leaders at the conference emphasized that the additional time built into the new curriculum is intended to deepen learning rather than increase attrition, creating deliberate opportunities for feedback and growth.
By convening stakeholders months ahead of implementation, the 166th Regional Training Institute positioned itself to help shape execution across the National Guard schoolhouse network.
The April pilot will provide feedback to curriculum developers before full implementation across the force, ensuring the Army’s foundational noncommissioned officer course continues to evolve to meet the demands of large-scale combat operations and multidomain environments.