Just 2 percent of students in grades 9-12 dropped out of the William S. Hart Union High School District  during the 2011-12 school year, according to data released Tuesday by the California Department of Education.

That’s half the percentage of students who dropped out statewide, and the figure reflects a 0.1 percent improvement for the Hart District on the year. The Hart District’s single-year dropout rate for the 2010-11 school year in grades 9-12 was 2.1 percent.

Across California, the one-year dropout rate in grades 9-12 improved to 4 percent during 2011-12 from 4.2 percent the year before.

Meanwhile, the comparable rate for Los Angeles County as a whole rose to 4.9 percent in 2011-12 from 4.8 percent in 2010-11.

In Santa Clarita, the rate is impacted by alternative and charter schools with small enrollments and high mobility, such as Mission View, where 42.2 percent were listed as dropouts during the year; Opportunities for Learning (8 percent), SCVi Charter (3.3 percent) and Einstein Academy (2.7 percent).

Bowman, a continuation high school with approximately 500 students, improved its dropout rate significantly to 2.3 percent (12 students) from 4.2 percent (21 students) one year earlier.

Among the district’s six comprehensive high schools, Golden Valley posted the highest dropout rate for 2011-12 (1.2 percent – 26 students), followed by Hart (0.7 percent – 15 students); Valencia (0.3 percent – 8 students); Canyon (0.3 percent – 7 students); West Ranch (0.2 percent – 6 students); and Saugus (0 percent – 1 student).

That compares to the following figures for the prior year (2010-11): Hart (0.9 percent – 18 students); Golden Valley (0.6 percent – 14 students); Valencia (0.3 percent – 10 students); Canyon (0.3 percent – 8 students); Saugus (0.3 percent – 7 students); and West Ranch (0.2 percent – 5 students).

State schools chief Tom Torlakson said in a statement that the improvement in California’s dropout rate is an indicator that there are “great things happening in California’s schools every day.”

“Of the students who started high school in 2008-09,” Torlakson’s statement said, “13.2 percent dropped out. That’s down 1.5 percentage points from the 2011 dropout rate. Among African-American students, 22.2 percent dropped out, down 3.1 percentage points from the year before. Among Hispanic students, 16.2 dropped out, down 2.1 percentage points from the year before.”

“Nearly eight out of 10 students, or 78.5 percent, who started high school in 2008-09 graduated with their class in 2012,” Torlakson said – an improvement of 1.4 percent on the year.