Binghamton University plans to hire 150 new faculty members by the 2015-16 academic year using additional funding raised through SUNY tuition hikes approved by the New York State Legislature this summer.

The faculty additions will coincide with a planned enrollment increase of 2,000 students at BU during the same time period, from 15,000 to 17,000. The expansion of the University’s size is being partially funded by a tuition hike stipulated in NYSUNY 2020, a piece of legislation that Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law in August.

NYSUNY authorized the SUNY Board of Trustees to raise tuition for SUNY and CUNY campuses every year for the next five years. SUNY schools will raise tuition $300 per year for in-state students through the 2015-16 academic year, $940 per year for out-of-state students at SUNY colleges and $1,340 per year for out-of-state students at the SUNY University Centers located in Binghamton, Stony Brook, Buffalo and Albany.

“We are reinvesting the money and expanding the faculty,” said Jean-Pierre Mileur, provost and vice president of academic affairs at BU. “We need more faculty, which will account for more classes, more research, more access to student resources and an easier way for undergraduates to complete their studies in four years.”

This year BU plans to add about 36 new tenure-track positions, according to an article in Inside Binghamton, the official University publication.

“We would probably hire more if we could afford it,” Mileur said.

Kate Flatley, the BU Student Association vice president of academic affairs, did not respond to an email or calls requesting comment.

David Ostermann, president of Mountainview College and a sophomore majoring in accounting, said he thought that hiring new faculty members would be beneficial to the University and to students.

“This puts more educated and qualified people on campus, which leads to smaller classes, less class closings and an overall better academic environment,” Ostermann said.

Kevin Lacey, director of BU’s Arabic studies program, said he agreed that BU needs new faculty members, but that he thinks faculty expansion requires careful planning.

“We need to readjust and shift the curriculum to match the shifting student needs and interests,” Lacey said. “Priorities need to be established. Where the hires are going and to what extent, I am eager to figure this out.”