Dimitri Shashkin is a Georgian

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

 politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 of Russian descent, currently serving as the Minister of Education and Science in the Cabinet of Georgia

Cabinet of Georgia

The Cabinet of Georgia is an executive council of government ministers in Georgia. It is headed by the Prime Minister of Georgia. In the cases of utmost importance, the meetings may be led by the President of Georgia . The first Cabinet of Georgia was formed by Noe Zhordania in the Democratic...

. Shashkin was appointed to the post on December 21, 2009 by Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Georgia

The Prime Minister of Georgia is the most senior minister within the Cabinet of Georgia, appointed by the President of Georgia. The official title of the Head of the Government of Georgia has varied throughout history, however, the duties and functions of the leader have changed only marginally....

 Nikoloz Gilauri

Nikoloz Gilauri

Nika Gilauri is a Georgian politician who has been serving as Prime Minister of Georgia since February 6, 2009. He had served as Minister for Energy and later as Minister for Finance and First Vice Prime Minister in the Cabinet of Georgia....

.

Early years

Shashkin was born on August 8, 1975 in Tbilisi

Tbilisi

Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...

, Georgia

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

. In 1992-1993, he attended Greek-Georgian University studying International Law. From 1992 through 1993, he worked as the Inspector at Weapons Office in Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia

Ministry of Internal Affairs (Georgia)

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia is a state law enforcement agency of the Republic of Georgia.As of 2011 Vano Merabishvili is the minister...

. From 1993 to 1998, he attended Tbilisi State University

Tbilisi State University

Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University , better known as Tbilisi State University , is a university established on 8 February 1918 in Tbilisi, Georgia. TSU is the oldest university in the whole Caucasus region...

, graduating with the Master's degree in Criminal Law with emphasis on State, Tax and Criminal Law.
He also briefly served as Lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 at Akhaltsikhe

Akhaltsikhe

Akhaltsikhe is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. It is situated on the both banks of a small river Potskhovi, which separates the city to the old city in the north and new in the south. The name of the city translates from Georgian as "new fortress".- History...

 Military Base of the Georgian Armed Forces until 1996. In 1997-1998, Shashkin worked as Program Assistant at American Bar Association

American Bar Association

The American Bar Association , founded August 21, 1878, is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. The ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of academic standards for law schools, and the formulation...

; from 1998 through 2001, as Assistant Program Officer at International Republican Institute

International Republican Institute

Founded in 1983, the International Republican Institute is an organization, funded by the United States government, that conducts international political programs, sometimes labeled 'democratization programs'....

 (IRI). In 2001, he was promoted to Resident Program Officer at the same institution and in 2007, he became the Resident Country Director of IRI, retaining the position until 2009. Between 1998-2008, Shashkin also provided private consulting and management services to various candidates during election campaigns.

Political career

On February 2, 2009 Shashkin was appointed head of the newly established Ministry of Corrections and Legal Assistance of Georgia

Ministry of Corrections and Legal Assistance (Georgia)

The Ministry of Corrections and Legal Assistance of Georgia is a governmental agency of Georgia in charge of regulating activities in the state penitentiary system. Its head office is in Tbilisi....

. On December 21, 2009 he was replaced by Khatuna Kalmaxelidze, and appointed Minister of Education and Science of Georgia.

Shashkin is married and has two children.