Community service is reemerging as an important focus for secondary education. This report, the culmination of a Ford Foundation project, considers independent schools' role in encouraging community service. Specifically, the project attempted to identify community service programs in private schools affiliated with the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), explain the programs' philosophies, describe their characteristics, and analyze their context. To accomplish these objectives, NAIS schools were surveyed and nine schools with exemplary programs were visited by the project researcher. Chapter 1 summarizes the quantitative survey data--program budget, level of student participation, and the number of hours students serve. The next three chapters provide a qualitative analysis of the schools' community service programs based on data from the nine visits. Chapter 2 considers the relative importance of the programs, while chapter 3 examines school policies that either encourage or inhibit them. Chapter 4 considers the role of service program coordinators in program design, implementation, and operation. The final chapter assesses program philosophies and accomplishments. Ideally, students' involvement in community service should engage their empathy and understanding of social dynamics, not merely expose them to less fortunate neighbors. Included are an appendix listing various service activity categories and a bibliography of 20 references. (MLH)