By Derek Hawkins

Hundreds of students and faculty lined the sidewalks on St. Botolph Street Monday morning to welcome Northeastern University President Joseph Aoun to his long-anticipated inauguration ceremony at Matthews Arena.

In a campus-wide event that lasted more than four hours and involved a roster of special guests including Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, Northeastern formally installed Aoun as the university’s seventh president.

The inauguration ceremony was officiated by Neal Finnegan, chairman of the board of trustees.

In his inaugural address, Aoun focused on four “themes” he said characterized Northeastern – experiential education, translational and interdisciplinary research, humanities and the arts, and urban engagement.

Aoun said he would expand and improve those themes during his tenure as president by building strong partnerships.

“There may have been a time when universities could survive and thrive in isolation,” he said. “That is no longer the case.”

Aoun discussed several initiatives he said would enhance experiential education, research, and the arts at Northeastern, and broaden the university’s role in the community. His proposals included: