The Board of Trustees has approved the 2016 fiscal year budget, which includes a 3.7 percent increase in tuition charges for students for the upcoming year, according to an email from University President Frederick to the University community on Monday afternoon.

The email said that raising money to support the University’s financial-aid program has continued to be a “top institutional priority” and that the University has raised more than $45 million for the Catalyst Fund, a scholarship fundraising initiative launched last spring and committed to granting students affordable education.

Lawrence wrote that the increase in tuition will also go toward investments on campus, including renovations of various buildings. Sherman Dining Hall is set to be renovated over the summer and will include the renovation of interior equipment and a “much-needed expansion” of a deck outside the Stein. The Einstein Bros. Bagels and Bookstore area in the Shapiro Campus Center will also be expanded, which Lawrence wrote will “dramatically improve [the] overall dining experience across campus.” Other renovations will include improvements to the first-year residence halls and the continued renovations of the Ziv Quad residence halls.

According to the email, funding will also go towards the hiring of many new faculty and staff on campus. Lawrence wrote that the University is “committed to maintaining a low student-to-faculty ratio, which results in an education that is vibrant, engaging, and intellectually challenging.” Lawrence also wrote that the University has hired several new faculty in the departments of History, English, Theater, Business, Sociology and Holocaust Studies and that several science departments, such as biochemistry, quantitative cell biology and physics, are actively in the process of recruiting faculty. The Hiatt Career Center will also see an increase in employers on campus.Lawrence also cited the Rape Crisis Center as a recent important investment on campus.

“The Board and the University’s senior administration appreciate the significant investment you are making in your future, and we know this increase adds to that burden,” he wrote. “Please be assured that our commitment to providing you with the highest-quality education, for which Brandeis is known, is matched by our best efforts to keep the cost of this education in check.”

“We will continue to seek every opportunity to find resources through our supporters and through increased efficiency to keep your costs down, without sacrificing the quality of your educational experience,” Lawrence concluded. The 3.7 percent increase matches last year’s 3.7 percent increase for fiscal year 2015. The tuition costs previously increased 3.94 percent for fiscal year 2014.