The Federal Government has played an increasingly dominant role in fostering policy directions during the past two decades. In 1961, the President's Committee on Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Crime adopted a comprehensive community development model which emphasized the creation of better opportunities in the worlds of work, school, family, recreation, and social services as a response to growing delinquency. The second major shift in national policy was spearheaded by presidential commissions that addressed crime and violence. In the juvenile area, this led to the strategies of decriminalization of status offenses, diversion programs, due process rights for juveniles, deinstitutionalization, diversification of services, and decentralization of control. The third major shift reflects a strong conservative reaction to liberal policies advocated by the national crime commission. This reaction is reflected in juvenile justice by increasing incarceration rates (even as juvenile crime declines), mandatory sentencing for juveniles, more waivers to adult courts, and greater access to juvenile records. In the future, several policy issues will require new perspectives and approaches: (1) the increasing isolation and alienation of youth; (2) the key role of local communities in crime prevention and control; (3) the allocation of Federal, State, and local resources; (4) the problems of employment and education that contribute to the alienation of youth; (5) fear of crime; and (6) the establishment of some mechanism by which a sustained attack on juvenile delinquency can be mounted. The article includes two footnotes.