Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Photo Editor

The Ohio State Board of Trustees voted Wednesday to increase fees by 3.3 percent for incoming in-state freshmen, according to an Ohio State news release. The tuition increase will be followed by a four-year freeze, providing a lock on tuition for in-state students.

The increase adds $358 to last year’s rate, affecting the third class under the Ohio State Tuition Guarantee. Students in need of financial aid will not be affected, as the university plans to increase aid packages by the same amount of $358. The past three entering classes have now been a part of the tuition guarantee.

Tuition freezes have occurred prior to the guarantee program, however, maintaining rates for in-state students since 2012, making the most recent entering class the fifth consecutive to experience a freeze. These actions come from a university mission to increase support for low- and moderate-income Ohioans, according to the news release.

“We speak often of affordability, access and excellence, and we think all the time about making the university experience affordable for the citizens of Ohio,” President Michael V. Drake said in the news release. “The value comes from the quality of the education that we provide and the quality of the opportunities that we provide, and affordability and access are important to make sure that that great value is available to our students.”

The increase will still keep Ohio State at the median for Big Ten school tuition and fees, according to the release.

This is an updated version of an earlier article.