John Sumaila Issahaku is a second-year PhD Student in the School of Education at Drexel University, specializing in Comparative and International Education Policy. His research investigates how education policies (particularly those related to curriculum reform, instructional design, and teacher education) are interpreted and enacted by educators in K–12 public schools. Grounded in sense-making theory, policy implementation, and street-level bureaucracy, his work explores how teachers and school leaders navigate policy overload, censorship, and reform pressures, and how these dynamics influence equity and classroom practice across diverse contexts.

John holds an M.A. in Development Studies (Governance and Public Policy) from Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands, where he served as Scholar Leader for the 2017–2018 Governance and Development Policy Track at the International Institute of Social Studies, The Hague. He also earned a B.Ed. in Social Studies Education from Valley View University and a Diploma in Basic Education from Gbewaa College of Education in Ghana. He has taught Science as a core subject at the K–12 level in Northern Ghana, particularly in the Tamale Metropolitan Area with the Ghana Education Service. Professionally, he has served as Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for the USAID/Ghana SAGES Project and as Research Intern at the International Institute of Social Studies. At Drexel, he is the Director of Professional Development (2025–2026) for the International Graduate Students Association. His goal is to bridge research, policy, and practice to advance equitable and contextually responsive education systems globally.