Center Point has named Andy Shaffer its director of religious education.

Shaffer plans to expand the religious education program to include more classes in the newly opened Center Point office in South Hall.

He comes to the nonprofit from Gainesville First United Methodist Church, where he has served as director of Christian education and discipleship.

Shaffer’s current research focuses on racial injustice in the context of religious organizations and practical theology. His previous research includes religious responses to violence and pacifism, postmodern readings of Ecclesiastes and theological-ethical approaches to climate change.

Shaffer, a graduate of Ohio Northern University and Candler School of Theology at Emory University, is a Pennsylvania native who lives in Atlanta.

Center Point offers family and children counseling, religious education, mentoring, and substance abuse and teen pregnancy intervention. For more information, visit CenterPointGa.org.