Before he went on air, he came down from the media riser to greet CUA students. He shook hands and posed for selfies, then climbed back up on the 10-tier riser to film his program.

@josefontanezzz tweeted the above photo, saying #CUA is so excited for @CNN with @andersoncooper live tonight here at @CatholicUniv ! #PopeInDC #PopeAtCUA

Anderson Cooper meets Catholic University students. from CUA Video on Vimeo.

Student volunteers label chairs for Wednesday’s papal Mass.

As musicians — including the CUA Symphony Orchestra and the University Chamber Choir — practice their pieces on a side stage, reporters from local and national television stations are readying their camera equipment on top of the newly-constructed media riser in front of John K. Mullen of Denver Library. Faculty experts have been speaking with the media, including President John Garvey, who joined reporter Lester Holt from NBC Nightly News for an interview on the roof of O’Connell Hall.

The liturgical committee is in high gear at the Basilica, preparing the altar, hanging the crucifix, and preparing tens of thousands of communion wafers — including a low-gluten variety — for tomorrow’s Mass.

Elsewhere on campus, students are navigating new routes as they walk between classes, which are still in session. In addition to the large number of bike racks put in place earlier this month for security reasons, students now face new obstacles: rows of porta-potties, ATMs, and quickly constructed food and souvenir stands.

Many students have been finding time during the day to investigate the scene on the University Mall, where 15,000 seats have been set up and numbered in preparation for the canonization Mass.

Student Victor Esposito is seen with his tickets to view Pope Francis’s address to Congress from the Capital.

In the early afternoon, students lined up at the information desk in the Edward J. Pryzbyla University Center, where the office of Jon Sawyer, associate vice president for student affairs and the dean of students, was distributing 700 tickets for students to view the Pope’s address to a joint meeting of Congress from the West Front of the Capital. The tickets were awarded to the University from the House of Representatives.

Freshman Briana Marcinauskis was among the students who received a ticket to the Capital.

“I was going back and forth (on whether I wanted the tickets) because I know I’m going to be so tired, but then I thought, ‘It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she said. “I got down (to the Pryzbyla Center) and they had five left so I grabbed two of them.”

Walking around campus the day before Pope Francis’s visit is “a little overwhelming,” Marcinauskis said. “Hearing all the music all day has been crazy, but people are really excited.”

Last Day Preps & Rehearsal from CUA Video on Vimeo.

CUA junior Angela Fragale is interviewed by a TV reporter about being chosen as one of the escorts for the deacons who will distribute communion at the papal Mass.

Washington, D.C., TV station ABC7 sent a crew on Friday afternoon to interview a few of the many students who will serve as escorts for the deacons who will distribute communion to the 25,000 worshippers on the University’s Mall.

With the backdrop of the Basilica adorned with a giant banner welcoming Pope Francis, senior engineering student Tyler Zimmerman told reporter Suzanne Kennedy, “It’s great to help out with something so important and so distinctive not just for our University but for the Catholic Church in general.” The segment aired on both the 4 p.m. and the 5 p.m. broadcasts.

Two other student communion escorts were interviewed by Kennedy: junior Angela Fragale and senior Tom Scalfaro.

Amy Rowland, a program coordinator in the Office of Campus Ministry, is interviewed by a Baltimore TV reporter.

Just across the University Mall at the same time, the local CBS Baltimore station had a crew at the Edward J. Pryzbyla University Center, where they asked students about the level of excitement on campus. In addition they spoke with staff member Amy Rowland, a program coordinator in the Office of Campus Ministry. That segment also aired on Friday on the station’s 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. broadcasts.

For more media reports featuring members of the CUA community, visit the CUA News & Media page.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl addresses the media at a news conference on the University Mall.

This morning, dozens of reporters assembled on the University Mall for an inside look at the preparations that are underway for the Sept. 23 Mass on the East Portico of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception during which Pope Francis will canonize American missionary Blessed Junípero Serra.

The reporters stood in the very spot where 25,000 people will gather in six days for the Mass. Before the press conference began, reporters got to witness staff members from the Office of Facilities Maintenance and Operations remove a light pole that stood in the way of the view of the East Portico of the Shrine.

Catholic University President John Garvey; Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington and University chancellor; and Monsignor Walter Rossi, rector of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, took a brief tour of the work underway on the Shrine, including a close-up inspection of the roof and stage that will be the visual centerpiece of next week’s Mass.

During the press conference, President Garvey, Monsignor Rossi, and Cardinal Wuerl all noted the work three CUA architecture students did to design the altar furniture that will be used during the Mass.

With Cardinal Wuerl at the news conference were, from left, Chieko Noguchi, director of media and public relations for the Archdiocese of Washington; John Garvey, president of The Catholic University of America; and Monsignor Walter Rossi, rector of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

“We’re providing the nave for the Mass,” Garvey said. “We’re best of neighbors with the Shrine.”

Garvey noted that on Sept. 23, 500 students from CUA will serve as volunteers and that approximately 6,000 members of the University community would be in attendance.

Cardinal Wuerl said he was hopeful that the sky on Sept. 23 would look “every bit as blue” as the sky this morning.

“Can you envision a better place for this Mass?” he asked.

Wuerl also spoke a bit about the “Francis effect” during the press conference.

“He [Pope Francis] has a way of touching people,” Wuerl said. “We are finding that so many young people especially are touched by Pope Francis.”

Although Wuerl said his office has received requests from approximately 10 times more people than there are spots available at the Mass, he thanked the media present for their role in bringing the Mass to those who will not be able to attend in person.

“Because of the ability you have to reach people all over the world, there will be millions of people assisting in this Mass.”

> Watch press conference video

Members of the media form a semicircle around Cardinal Wuerl on the University Mall.

Carlos Hernandez works on the altar that will be used by Pope Francis as he celebrates Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in September.

More than two dozen reporters swarmed Carriage Hill Cabinets in Frederick, Md., Aug. 17 to get a glimpse of the altar furniture that will be used by Pope Francis in Washington, D.C., in September. The furniture was designed as part of a competition among CUA students in April. The winning designers — recent architecture graduates (pictured above, from left) Ariadne Cerritelli, Matthew Hoffman, and Joseph Taylor — patiently participated in four hours of interviews Monday afternoon while also trying to take quick breaks to talk to the builders and see their designs coming to life.

The furniture is being built by Deacon Dave Cahoon, a carpenter and ordained deacon for the Archdiocese of Washington, with assistance from Doug Fauth at Carriage Hill Cabinets. Assisting Deacon Dave — both in building the furniture and in the media event Monday — were other local craftsmen including Lawrence Wroten, who carved the papal seal onto what will become the back of the Pope’s chair, and Karen Kouneski, who is working on the mosaic that will be installed in the center arch of the altar. Deacon Dave’s employee Carlos Hernandez continued working on the altar through much of the media event.

Cerritelli and Hoffman are continuing with master’s degree studies at CUA this fall. Taylor is working for an architecture firm in Annapolis, Md.

To view stories resulting from this media event, visit In the Media.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl reveals details of Pope Francis’s visit to Washington, D.C.

On June 30, dozens of reporters, producers, and cameramen packed St. Anthony Chapel in the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in downtown Washington, D.C., to hear Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington and University chancellor, officially announce the Washington schedule for Pope Francis’s first visit to the United States in September.

Although the visit is almost three full months away, the media is already buzzing about the significance of the trip. Reporters from national and local news outlets peppered Cardinal Wuerl with a variety of questions, such as:

• How will the public be able to obtain tickets to the Sept. 23 Mass on the East Portico of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception? During the Mass, Pope Francis will canonize American missionary Blessed Junípero Serra. The congregation attending the Mass will assemble in the area surrounding the steps of the Basilica, including the 3.6-acre University Mall.
  Answer: A final decision hasn’t been made yet but those interested in learning more should stay tuned to www.adw.org/papalvisit for information.
• Will Pope Francis bring the popemobile?
  Answer: Yes, but it’s still unknown when or where he will ride in the popemobile.
• What will be the focus of Pope Francis’s address to Congress on Sept. 24?
  Answer: Cardinal Wuerl is unsure, but when the Holy Father speaks to Congress, he will be doing so from a spiritual standpoint, not a political one.

Frank Persico speaks with NBC 4 about preparations for Pope Francis’s visit to CUA.

Representatives from the Archdiocese of Washington, Basilica, and Catholic University posted live updates to social media accounts during the press conference, which was broadcast live through the Periscope app. The organizations are promoting the hashtag #PopeinDC for all news related to the D.C. leg of Pope Francis’s visit.

After the official press conference, members of the media were invited to interview representatives of the Catholic entities that will host Pope Francis in Washington. Frank Persico, vice president for University relations and chief of staff, spoke with NBC 4, WNEW Radio, the Associated Press, and others about the University’s preparations for the visit. Persico has witnessed the two other papal visits to CUA: Pope John Paul II in 1979 and Pope Benedict XVI in 2008.