Staff Sergaent Matthew Woods stands in uniform with his wife Jamie Woods.
SSG Woods graduates from Civil Affairs Qualification course
By Brandon Frye
Choctaw Nation
Staff Sergeant Matthew J. Woods was born on April 22, 1984 in Fresno, Calif. He enlisted in the Army as an Infantryman and attended basic and advanced individual training Feb. 19, 2004 at Ft. Benning, Ga. “I have been serving for over 11 years now in the U.S Army. I first served 10 years as a Paratrooper and an Infantryman,” Woods said.
In January 2014 SSG Woods attended Civil Affairs Assessment Selection where he was successfully selected to attend the Civil Affairs Qualification Course. He graduated the Civil Affairs Qualification Course on April 2, 2015 and became a new member of the Army special operation community.
“The training was nearly a year long with both very mental and physical barriers to include language training,” Woods said.
SSG Woods’ assignments include tours with 3-325th AIR, Ft. Bragg, N.C.; 2-508th PIR, Ft. Bragg, N.C.; 2-16th IN, Ft. Riley, KS; Kansas City Recruiting Battalion, Mo.; 2-34th AR, Ft. Riley, Kan.; and most recently 3rd BN, 1st Special Warfare Training Group, Ft. Bragg, N.C.; SSG Woods’ combat tours include: two tours in Iraq (OIF II-III and OIF V-VI).
SSG Woods has served in many leadership positions to include Team Leader, Section Leader, Squad Leader, and Army Recruiter.
SSG Woods’ military education includes Warrior Leader Course, Basic NCO Course, Advance NCO Course, Airborne School, Air Assault School, and Army Recruiter Course, Civil Affairs Qualification Course.
SSG Woods’ awards and decorations include ARCOM (x5) AAM (x3) Good Conduct Medal (x3), National Defense Service Medal, ICM-CS, GWOT-EM, GWOT-SM, NCOPD (x2), Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Ribbon, Combat Infantry Badge, Parachutist Badge, Air Assault Badge, Army Recruiter Badge (Gold). He also holds BS/BA from Post University in Waterbury, Conn.
SSG Woods is married to the former Jamie Fox of St. James, Mo. The two are expecting their first child in October.