About 15 faculty members attended the first open forum to discuss the university’s new Academic Initiative plan and mission statement Friday afternoon. The modest crowd questioned a few points of the plan, but were relatively mute throughout the hour-long presentation.

The plan is an initiative presented by President Joseph Aoun to create a focus for the University based on academic priorities.

In January and February, four committees evaluated different areas of the university, including arts and humanities, interdisciplinary research and experiential education. The committees’ findings were published in draft form in April for faculty, professors and students to examine.

President Aoun’s intent is Northeastern “can’t be in a situation to copy what others do to be successful,” said Mark Putnam, chief planning officer and chief of staff.

The plan’s steering committee also updated the university’s mission statement, which was last updated in 1987.

At a lengthy two-and-a-half pages, the former mission statement was “dramatically out of date … and lacked a focus heading into the future,” Putnam said at the forum.

The new mission is similar to what can be found in the corporate world, Putnam said. In two sentences it states: “To educate students for a fulfilled life. To create and translate knowledge to meet global and societal needs.”

The mission is accompanied by a list of the university’s core values, which fall in five categories: access, contribution, diversity, engagement and integrity.

Some at the meeting said they felt the mission statement was an improbable statement.

“It is grandiose aspirations. I don’t see how we can promise that,” said one faculty member at the meeting.

Putnam agreed that the statement was grandiose, but justified the reasoning behind it.

“I see it as something we will always be striving for and never achieve. It will drive us always to do what’s best for the students,” he said.

Associate marketing professor Bruce Clark said he liked the mission and thinks the university should aspire to high goals.

Provost Ahmed Abdelal spoke to the faculty about what the committees concluded in their drafts. A full version of the drafts can be read at www.neu.edu/planning.

The key component of every section of the plan was in creating global and local partnership and interdisciplinary study, Abdelal stressed throughout his presentation.

“It can take 20 to 40 years before new disciplines emerge,” he said. “[But by] being more daring and creative, Northeastern can be leading change rather than following along.”

Kostia Bergman, associate biology professor, questioned the focus and said the University “can’t have inter-disciplinary [study] if we don’t have strong disciplines.”

Other discussions centered on confusion about certain definitions like the term “access” and how it fit with the university’s trend to become “more and more selective.” It was ultimately decided to change the word to “opportunity.”

While the planning process is still in the conceptual phase, the implementation process will begin after the board of trustees reviews the drafts Friday, Putnam said.

Due to a high demand from faculty, another open forum will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday in 450 Dodge Hall.