This report discusses issues concerning the establishment of a national youth service in the United States, national service models from other countries, and the role of private organizations in this issue. National service refers to a program in which young people participate in public service activities for a limited amount of time at relatively low pay. It may be linked to a military obligation or entirely separate from it. The document is presented in five sections. The introduction includes arguments for and against national service. Arguments for a national service suggest that it would shape better citizens, the country needs youth, and it would attack youth problems. Those against a national service argue that it is a means to make national registration and draft more palatable, the cost cannot be justified, and it violates constitutional rights. Section II discusses comparable programs in other countries. Most national service experiments have been in countries with primitive economies and high development needs. Programs in Western industrialized countries are limited to alternative service options for individuals unwilling to enlist in the military. Section III describes opinions of national service held by both public and private sectors. Section IV discusses questions and tradeoffs concerned with establishing a national service, such as voluntary or obligatory, military or non-military, and funding. The final section recommends that the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations develop a national service teaching module and fund a documentary which presents the best arguments for and against the national service. (Author/KC)