Focus group participants generally agreed that the greatest threat to probation and parole was lack of clarity of purpose. The search for clarity of purpose and confidence in probation and parole systems led participants to explore the relationship between probation and parole agencies and communities. Participants determined communities want to be safe from violent crime, to hold offenders accountable, to ensure that offenders repair the damage they have caused, to provide treatment for offenders so they are safely released from incarceration, and to facilitate public and victim involvement in probation and parole systems. Participants also addressed characteristics of probation and parole clients, probation and parole orders, and vulnerabilities of community corrections. Five futures for probation and parole were identified as muddling along, principled minimalism, enforcing court orders, community and restorative justice, and public safety. 5 references