The Army has surpassed its goals for recruiting new soldiers, and that means more enlistees will be training at Missouri's Fort Leonard Wood.
The Army added 10 new basic training companies over the past several months. Five of them are at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, and five of them are at Fort Leonard Wood.
That will increase the number of soldiers going through basic combat training at the post by 30%, to 18,000 this year.
Fort Leonard Wood was built in 1940 to train troops for World War II. It has been one of the Army's basic training locations ever since.
"Just like we did in the early 1940s for the divisions going overseas, we're continuing to do that basic combat combat training mission now," said Brig. Gen. Bradley Leonard, deputy commander at Fort Leonard Wood.
The expansion means there will be other positions added to the post's staff. Sixteen drill sergeants and 11 other personnel will take on the bulk of the added training capacity.
The economic impact will include 20 more graduation ceremonies each year, which often attract family and friends of the graduates from all over the country.
Missouri's congressional representatives are hoping the larger basic training classes will lead to more financial investment at the facility, including for training areas, housing and infrastructure.
"These investments are just a down payment on ensuring that Fort Leonard Wood remains a pillar of our military training and preparedness for generations to come," said U.S. Rep. Mark Alford, R-Cass County.
Military recruitment declined significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, the Army missed its recruiting goal by about 25%, or 15,000 soldiers. Numbers rebounded by September 2024, and all branches of the military met their recruitment goals. The numbers have increased since then.
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