Photo by Sam Yu Mount St. Mary’s University President Thomas Powell displays the Papal Commemorative Medal he received from Pope Benedict XVI in Washington on Thursday.

"I got to say 'Thank you' a lot," Powell said of meeting Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday at Catholic University in Washington. "...It was quite the media event. There must have been nine photographers taking pictures."

Powell was one of 10 people selected to individually meet the pope. Others included CNN's Wolf Blitzer, MSNBC's Tim Russert and other educators.

"(The pope) wanted to congratulate us for our bicentennial of 200 years, and talk about the importance of Mount St. Mary's and the Catholic Church in America and the good work of our faculty," he said.

Powell and the other attendees were given medals bearing an image of the pontiff and the United Nations.

"It's just the few minutes I had with him -- just the absolutely humble and wonderful and loving individual," he said.

Powell said he was selected because of the Mount's stature as a historic Catholic university.

"I think the fact that the Mount is the oldest independent Catholic college in the United States and we're celebrating our bicentennial this year made a difference," he said.

Powell also attended a meeting at Catholic University during which the holy father addressed the more than 200 presidents of U.S. Catholic colleges and universities for roughly 40 minutes.

Benedict spoke about the importance of grounding educational institutions in the Catholic faith and humanitarian efforts, Powell said. He also referenced Elizabeth Seton, a nun who founded the Mother Seton School in Emmitsburg.

"He spoke about her, and again that we need that same kind of zeal and passion as we lead Catholic colleges and universities," Powell said.

The pope did not put forth any sweeping policy changes for Catholic institutions, Powell said.

"He was prescriptive only in the sense if you want to be a Catholic institution, that has to mean something," he said. "...His issue was probably more encouraging and thanking us for our good work."

With no specific plans for change at the Mount based on the pope's message, Powell said he will pen a memo to the campus about his visit.

In the future, students and faculty will gather to discuss adapting policies and procedures to enhance the campus ministry, welcome students of all faiths and build on the school's religious principals, he said.

"The Mount already has a strong Catholic identity," Powell said. "Could we do better? Sure."