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Six waves of data are derived from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. Analyses employ a subsample ( n = 4753) of adolescents who were between the ages of 12-14 and engaged in delinquent activities at the first round of data collection. Logistic regression results indicate that the odds of engaging in delinquency increased if the individual is older, male, involved in a gang, disengaged from school, and exposed to more violence. A series of growth models focusing on the subset of adolescents who engaged in some level of delinquency suggest that individual, neighborhood, and family processes predict adolescent trajectories of delinquency. Specifically, females begin at higher initial levels of delinquency and have a slower rate of change, while minority status indicates starting at a lower initial level and a slower rate of change in delinquent activities. Measures of negative community influences suggest higher initial levels but slower growth in delinquency. Positive family processes indicate lower initial levels of delinquency. Overall, these predictors of delinquent trajectories are similar for males and females. Experiencing violence at an early age was the only characteristic that significantly differed between males and females, predicting increases in delinquency over time for males. Results suggest numerous avenues for research, intervention, and policy. Broader implications for policy, such as providing adolescents with opportunities to serve in crime prevention efforts in their communities, are also discussed.