NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Metro school system may have reached a turning point regarding students who skip class.

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For the first time in four years, school officials said the truancy problem is getting better.

They credit a new, problem-solving approach that puts students face-to-face with the people who are trying to keep them in school.

School leaders said the number of truancy cases has decreased by 10 percent this year, compared to where the schools were at this point last year. They are crediting a new approach that involves a group of people now in the schools full-time.

A Stratford High School sophomore has been absent from class so often she's being sent to meet with an attendance counselor.

Attendance counselor Brad Blake has become a familiar face at Stratford. Any student with five or more unexcused absences is referred to his office.

"We're really getting to the roots of what's fueling the truancy," said Blake.

This is the first year that attendance counselors, social workers and behavior specialists' offices have been in school buildings and not at the central office.

In each of the district's clusters, a team is responsible for working daily to improve attendance. Part of that involves talking to parents.

"Every single day, social workers and I are going out on home visits all over east Nashville, connecting with parents, students in the buildings," said Blake.

District leaders believe this new approach has already made a difference.

Comparing the first nine weeks of last year to this one, there's been about a 10 percent decrease in the number of students with five or more unexcused absences. That number is the lowest it has been in four years.

"You have all of these people working together collaboratively on trying to get to the root cause of why a child is out of school," said Ralph Thompson, Metro Schools.

For the next six weeks, the Stratford sophomore will have to check in with the counselor's office every day. If she doesn't, it's the counselor's job to find her.