Built for Wraparound Care: How RiteTrack Embraced the Model from the Start
by Even Brande
RiteTrack is one of the leading human services software solutions on the market today. A great number of state, local, and tribal government programs today use RiteTrack in juvenile justice. RiteTrack is particularly effective in facilitating collaboration among the different stakeholders involved in a case. This has proven to have strong impact in wraparound care models used in communities throughout the country. This is the story of how RiteTrack came to be, why wraparound is built into its DNA, and why this makes RiteTrack so powerful in serving the needs of these types of programs.
The Birth of RiteTrack
To start a successful business, it is helpful to have some relevant experience. When I started Handel in 1997, I had spent the previous four years working for another tech startup, first as project manager, and later in sales and marketing. I also had basic coding and database skills, honed since I got my first computer at the age of 12. What I lacked was the “what”. What type of software are we going to sell? At first, I was just picking up custom software projects one at time. I built a point-of-sale software for a flooring company, a vehicle registration database for the local county government, and an investment portfolio reporting solution for our local bank, just to name a few. Few, if anyone that I know, have built a successful company making custom software, one solution at a time. To build a successful company one has to have a product that can be sold over and over again. A product for which you are an expert. Preferably, according to “Built to Last” author Jim Collins, “best-in-the-world” kind of expert. A “hedgehog concept”.
According to most sources, only about one out of ten tech startups survive. Fortunately, this was a statistic I didn’t know at the time I started Handel, or I may have never even tried. At this point I should point out another ingredient that I believe is important for a company to have success: Luck.
Many people will likely disagree with me about this. However, with my background in tech startups, mentoring other entrepreneurs, and teaching entrepreneurship classes at a university, I have seen luck or coincidences, or simply being in the right place at the right time, play a big part the success of many companies. Whatever it was, I believe Handel’s success was partially built on some amount of luck, specifically a phone call that came in the spring of 1998, less than a year into our existence.
A former college classmate called me. She had heard that I had started a company that was building custom databases. She was the IT manager of a human services department in a large Colorado county. They needed a database for their new Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC). Could I possibly make such a solution for them? At this point I should remind the reader that English is my second language. There was a slight obstacle for me to answer this question. I had no idea what the word “juvenile” meant. It was just not a word that had crossed my still-growing English vocabulary after moving from Norway to the US a few years earlier. After briefly educating myself, I called my friend back and replied that I would be happy to take a look at their database needs.
Juvenile Assessment Centers
Juvenile Assessment Centers (JACs) originated in the United States in the early 1990s as a way to streamline and improve the response to juvenile delinquency by providing a centralized point for intake, evaluation, and referral of youth entering the justice system. The first model was developed in Florida, where policymakers and practitioners recognized the need for a more coordinated and efficient approach to assess the needs and risks of young offenders. JACs were designed to bring together multiple agencies—such as law enforcement, mental health, substance abuse, and social services—under one roof to conduct comprehensive assessments and quickly connect youth with appropriate interventions. This wraparound care model aimed to reduce system fragmentation, promote early intervention, and improve outcomes for at-risk youth.
This was indeed the spark that led to the birth of RiteTrack. In 1998 there were a lot of companies developing corrections software. There were also a lot of companies developing human services software. However, as it turned out, nobody seemed to offer a solution that served at the intersection of these two fields. This, as it would turn out, was exactly what these wraparound care programs, like the JAC, needed.
At the time, this first project felt just like another custom software project. I had already moved on to another project, when a few months later a call came in from another Colorado county. They had heard we had a software solution for wraparound programs. Then one day, a call came in from Miami-Dade County, Florida. “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Colorado anymore.” This was the inflection point that would change the history of Handel. If one of the largest counties in the country was calling a three-person startup in Laramie, Wyoming, then this was clearly a market that nobody else was serving. From that day on, our focus changed strictly to build RiteTrack, the human services software that has been the driver of Handel’s success for the past 25 years.
The Information Management Needs of Wraparound Care Models
When we designed the original version of RiteTrack, we were intentional about aligning both its functionality and user interface with the unique needs of wraparound care models. These models emphasize holistic, family-centered approaches to juvenile justice and social services. Key goals of wraparound programs typically include:
- Family-Driven Care
- Cross-System Collaboration
- Adoption of Restorative Justice Practices
- Trauma-Informed Care
- Community-Based Alternatives to Detention
RiteTrack was built to fully support these goals through a purpose-built database schema centered around wraparound principles, a robust security framework, and dual interfaces — one for employees and one for clients. Following is a quick overview of how RiteTrack addresses some of these essential needs.
Family-Driven Care
Modern juvenile justice systems increasingly prioritize family engagement in both treatment planning and decision-making, recognizing the vital role families play in a young person’s rehabilitation. RiteTrack is designed to encourage this involvement at every stage of the case. Family input is gathered during the development of treatment plans and, through the client portal, families can access updates and share feedback throughout the process. This ensures families stay informed and engaged, while allowing case workers to maintain open, ongoing communication.
Cross-System Collaboration
RiteTrack is designed to facilitate seamless collaboration across multiple agencies and roles. Whether it’s intake workers, case managers, counselors, teachers, judges, or law enforcement officers — each role is assigned access to specific portions of the client’s record relevant to their responsibilities. For example, teachers can update and review academic progress but will not see legal or mental health data, while judges may have access to legal records but not educational files. Each organization can fully customize these access controls, enabling coordinated cross-system collaboration while protecting client privacy — all with the goal of delivering the best possible outcomes for youth.
Adoption of Restorative Justice Practices
RiteTrack empowers programs to analyze case data and identify patterns linked to both recidivism and successful rehabilitation. These insights can inform and shape treatment plans by highlighting approaches that have proven effective for youth in similar situations, helping programs adopt restorative practices that are grounded in evidence and tailored to the needs of the community.
Trauma-Informed Care
Given the widespread impact of trauma on justice-involved youth, many programs are embedding trauma-informed practices into their service models. RiteTrack helps ensure that trauma-related insights are effectively communicated to the providers and stakeholders working directly with each young person, supporting a more empathetic and informed approach to care and intervention.
Community-Based Alternatives to Detention
As systems increasingly shift toward community-based interventions rather than traditional detention, RiteTrack provides the infrastructure to support this transition. By systematically tracking youth participation in services and community programs, RiteTrack helps organizations document progress, measure outcomes, and strengthen the case for alternatives to detention.
These are just a few examples of how RiteTrack supports wraparound care models. We would love the opportunity to demonstrate, either in person or through an online session, how RiteTrack can advance the work of your programs and support youth and families in your community. Our long history of serving communities who have embraced the wraparound care models gives us unique experiences and insights. We would love to bring this expertise to your community.
