Byron Kerns Survival School is nationally-recognized as one of the top ten survival schools in the United States. Teachings focus on modern survival, with an emphasis on both short-term survival, and long-term survival. Scheduled courses are provided year-round at two different locations: central FL, near The Villages; and north GA, near Helen.

​Laurence Gonzales, author of the book, Deep Survival, says this:
"As I caught my first glimpse of our instructor, Byron Kerns, he swaggered toward us wearing an 18-inch machete, a big, macho looking guy. He had worked at the famous USAF Survival School in the state of Washington. When I saw him, I thought: We're in for it now. Byron turned out to be soft-spoken, polite, cheerfully earnest, and gentle to a fault. He moved slowly, never hurried, and was always carefully assessing himself and his environment. He wasn't prone to high emotional states. He carried with him a contagious air of calm. Even after a lifetime in the wilderness, Kerns entered the woods with a deep sense of respect, like a man approaching an unpredictable creature."

Byron Kerns
CEO / CHIEF INSTRUCTOR
He's got the pedigree and it's backed with decades of experience. As a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Survival (SERE) Instructor School (Class 71-02), most would think Byron would be hard-charging and stern. Those who receive his instruction experience a completely different person: a teacher that is caring, humble, protective, serious - yet fun, passionate, emotional, and full of crazy stories. For the past 22-years, Byron has been providing instruction to the public. More than 800 small groups with people from all walks of life - an elite Navy SEAL Team (that rhymes with fix), doctors, lawyers, business owners, pilots, teachers, law enforcement and rescue personnel, fire fighters, Homeland Security teams, to name a few, have experienced Byron's teachings. He has spent so many nights in the woods that he has lost count, and traveled more than 7000-miles off-trail using map & compass. Byron's wilderness experience and hours of teachings have weathered him into an instructor with a calm, humble confidence that bespeaks a dedicated duty and passion to instruct others in the art of wilderness survival.

​"Within two-minutes of meeting Byron, I knew all was going to be okay." 
​- Neil G., Heart Surgeon
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Kelley Arthur
VP, MARKETING
​This spunky Canadian is Byron's wife - and she keeps everything running smoothly. While Byron handles the educational direction, primary instruction, and facilitation of courses, Kelley polices the corporate image and handles the marketing and data base duties. She is happiest hiking the hills and the Appalachian Trail, and she loves helping and assisting with students. When Kelley's not involved at the school, she's an IT manager for a Fortune 500 company. And, at night she is a homework queen - pursuing a degree in Cyber Security.

Emmitt Wakefield
LEAD ASST. INSTRUCTOR
​This awesome outdoorsman has studied with Byron - learning a myriad of wilderness survival skills and the operations of the school - for the past seven years. He has attended in a student role our full gamut of courses, and he has assisted with numerous courses in both non-teaching and teaching roles.  Emmitt is also a professional photographer who, when not capturing portraits of people, likes to weave his way through the wilderness capturing images of wildlife and nature.