John Murphy

John Murphy is an international development practitioner specializing in quantitative analysis and human capital development with a focus on Central Asia. John was raised in Washington State, but he has spent much of the past five years working in the Kyrgyz Republic.

John earned his bachelor’s degree from Colgate University in 2015, where he majored in international relations and minored in economics. He graduated summa cum laude as the class of 2015 valedictorian and received the Paul Stillman award for academic excellence in international relations.

After graduating, John returned to Washington State to pursue a career in management consulting. As a consultant, he provided marketing, strategy, and project management services to many of the world’s leading technology firms, personally leading 10-15 engagements with Fortune 500 clients.

After five years as a consultant, John joined the Peace Corps with the goal of applying the results-oriented mindset he developed in the private sector in a more human-focused environment. John spent almost three years as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Kyrgyz Republic, where he worked closely with local English teachers at a rural school serving over 1,300 students. As a volunteer, John taught local students, trained other English teachers, and implemented small-scale grants to secure critical learning resources. He also led an effort to evaluate student outcomes and provide Peace Corps leadership, volunteer teachers, and local partners with actionable insights on student skills.

John is currently a member of Georgetown University’s Global Human Development program, where he is studying quantitative analysis and human capital development. During his time at Georgetown, John plans to deepen his understanding of the development landscape in Central Asia, develop the analytical skills needed to rigorously evaluate complex projects, and explore both public sector and private sector solutions to today’s most pressing education challenges.

Summer internship

Interning with the Aga Khan Foundation’s Agriculture, Food Security, and Climate Resilience team in the Kyrgyz Republic gave me an amazing opportunity to apply these skills in a real-world setting. As a member of the team this summer, I led an effort to evaluate the impact of an ongoing training program that teaches local farmers to produce and use organic fertilizers and biological pesticides. In partnership with the team, I selected indicators to assess the program’s impact on key outcomes and developed a survey instrument which we piloted with over 40 local farmers. Based on the results of our preliminary survey, I presented directional insights to the leadership team, developed a farm profitability model, and formulated an impact evaluation plan the team can use to conduct a full-scale evaluation of the project.