With the structure of Austin Community College's new Hays Campus complete, it was time to celebrate. The traditional topping out ceremony normally ends with a tree placed symbolically at the top, but winds kept it on the ground and moved the celebration indoors.

The new campus brings with it a new partnership between the community college and Texas State University in San Marcos. The institutions announced Tuesday a new “pathway program” which will allow students to dual enroll.

"What this allows a student to do earlier in their career is to get engaged at Texas State,” TSU President Denise Trauth said. “We think that's going to predict a better and a higher graduation rate."

Before, it was common for students to attend ACC for two years and then transferred to Texas State. Now, students will be able to take advantage of programs and activities at both schools at the same time.

"They can live in the residence halls at Texas State. They're also going to have access to the full panoply of services that both of our institutions offer," Trauth said.

Richard Rhodes, president of Austin Community College, said the program will benefit students and employers, especially in the rapidly expanding communities in Hays County.

"This really opens the doors to a lot more students from the Kyle-Buda area, the Hays County Area," Rhodes said.

Right now as more university-bound ACC students end up at Texas State than any other school, the new program will help make the transition from core classes to a major even more seamless.

"It will allow a student to simultaneously take courses both at ACC and at Texas State," Trauth said.

The ACC Hays Campus is on schedule to be completed in time for the 2014 spring semester.

ACC and the University of Texas announced a similar program last week.