KENNESAW, Ga. | Sep 25, 2025

On a recent morning at VyStar Arena at KSU Convocation Center, the arena staff started laying down the volleyball floor when a singing voice cut through the noise.

Pushing a bicycle through a nearby hallway, Kennesaw State University volleyball player Manu Johnsen announced her presence that morning in song, much the way as she has made her presence known at the Owls’ home arena and on campus.

“That just sums her up,” said Keith Schunzel, KSU volleyball coach. “She’s just full of life and full of energy.”

On the court, Johnsen will finish her volleyball career this fall as an all-timer for the Owls. The senior is a four-time all-conference selection and an academic all-conference selection as well. She has also represented her home country of Denmark in both beach and indoor volleyball.

In the classroom, Johnsen carries a 3.9 grade-point average as a biology major with a minor in data science and analytics, a combination that has her back and forth between the Marietta and Kennesaw campuses daily. She has made the President’s List and the Dean’s List repeatedly. In pursuit of perfection, she’s retaking two classes this fall to improve grades from her sophomore year, which gives her a full courseload of 18 credits – as she approaches her December graduation date.

“I want people to know that I’m more than an athlete,” Johnsen said. “I compete hard in volleyball, and I work hard in the classroom.”

The energy Johnsen brings to life comes from a second chance of sorts. She struggled in school in Denmark and was later diagnosed with dyslexia, which she has handled well while at KSU. She did not struggle on the volleyball court, however, and coaches Dan and Coley Pawlikowski, who coached Johnsen at her club in Denmark, contacted their longtime friend Schunzel about an outside hitter who might thrive at an American college.

“I’ve known Dan and Coley for years from the Chicago area, and they got in touch with me about Manu when they coached in Denmark,” Schunzel said. “They told me they had this really good athlete who might be interested in coming to the States. We talked with Manu on FaceTime and, honestly, she was one of the easiest recruits we’ve worked with in getting a commitment to come play for the Owls. We knew there would be some challenges but we had no worries that she’d fit in well.”

The volleyball piece fell into place, as Johnsen earned freshman of the year honors in the ASUN Conference in 2022, plus first-team all-conference honors in both the ASUN and Conference USA in subsequent seasons. She also wrote her name throughout KSU’s single-match, single-season, and career record books.

By her own lofty standards, the academic piece took a little time, as well as the support of those around her.

Johnsen has her eye on bioinformatics as a career because it engages her interests in biology and programming, thus she chose to major in biology and minor in data science and analytics. The latter put her in contact with her favorite professor at KSU.

Earlier this year, she took two classes from Michael Frankel, a principal lecturer of statistics – one class in-person during the spring and one online during her summer spent in Denmark competing for the national team. Johnsen excelled in both formats. Frankel said she sat in the front row of his class and consistently participated. He also described a Zoom session with Johnsen at 1 a.m. Denmark time with practice just six hours away, just fine-tuning her understanding of a lesson.

“I wish I had more students like her. It's that simple,” Frankel said. “She comes prepared to class, she's always asking the pertinent questions, she always wants to go above and beyond. I can't say enough good things about her.”

Johnsen, in turn, can’t say enough kind things about Frankel and the other professors from the College of Computer Science and Software Engineering and the College of Science and Mathematics who have accommodated her travel schedule and learning challenges. She also lucked into a couple of supportive and informed coaches – Schunzel has a bachelor’s in biology and said he shares a kinship with all his student-athletes who have majored in sciences, and associate head coach Garrett Bitter has a bachelor’s in mathematics; Johnsen said he has helped her immensely.

“People need to know how supportive our whole athletics department is, and how supportive my professors have been,” she said. “I’ve had great teammates, too; they’ve become like family for me. I’m glad I came to Kennesaw State because I would not have had these experiences anywhere else.”

After graduating in December, Johnsen plans to pursue a master’s in data science and analytics while playing professional indoor volleyball overseas. The 2028 Olympics are on the radar, too, though she sees a better chance of that in beach volleyball. Schunzel said he expects her to bring her off-the-charts energy to whatever she pursues.

“When that woman decides to do something, she goes for it,” he said. “She doesn’t do anything halfway, and that’s what’s great about her.”

– By Dave Shelles

Photos provided

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties, and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 8 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.