Gary Swangin
CEO & President - BEGST founder Gary Swangin is currently the astronomer and manager of the Panther Planetarium (Paterson NJ) which is geared toward high school students. Previously, he was director of the Newark Museum Planetarium in Newark, NJ for nearly 16 years.
Gary has served as an international technical consultant for Minolta, Mitsubishi, and Spitz Space systems, specializing in the development of planetariums and astronomical observatories. As a computer consultant for several Fortune 500 corporations, he specialized in Hewlett Packard and IBM server technologies.
Gary has taught astronomy and astrophysics at Rutgers University, Fairleigh Dickenson University, County College of Morris, and William Paterson University, where he also served on the science advisory board. He currently teaches astronomy and conducts STEM seminars in astronomy and electronics, at Passaic County Community College.
He has produced numerous science programs for radio and audio-video presentations. His radio documentary-- "Are We Alone in the Universe?", a one-hour program sponsored by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and W.R. Grace & Co., was heard by nearly ten million people worldwide and won the Ohio State Award, given for excellence in educational, informational, and public affairs broadcasting. Subsequently, the documentary was nominated for a Peabody Award.
He has also produced for ACS, "DNA: Architect of Life"-- a radio documentary on recombinant DNA technology and genetic engineering.
Serving as a technical consultant, Mr. Swangin has traveled throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan. He is a former fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of England and a former member of the American Astronomical Society.
In 2017, a planetarium in Kabul, Afghanistan was named in his honor for his work in astronomical education. Already hundreds of Afghan school children have visited the Gary Swangin Planetarium. Recently Asteroid 107396 was name after him.
Michael Schwartz
CTO - Michael brings a multidisciplinary background to this endeavor. He holds degrees in archeology and physics and has completed coursework in physical anthropology with a specialty in mathematical morphometrics. Interested in astronomy since childhood, Michael is the founder of Tenagra Observatories in Arizona and was one of the first amateurs to discover extragalatic supernovae.
He is co-creator, along with his programming assistant Paulo Holvorcem, of the first multiuser automated telescopes. The Tenagra 32” became the first commercial telescope accessible to paying universities worldwide. With his 16” model, Michael discovered a dozen comets, the most exceptional being Comet Tenagra-Tombaugh, found and lost by Clyde Tombaugh in the search for Pluto. This resulted in 12 Edgar O. Wilson awards totaling over $25,000, a sum split with Mr. Holvorcem,
In 2015, Michael received a $500,000 grant from NASA to locate known NEOs, a step toward determining if an asteroid is potentially dangerous. He has traveled to every continent except Antarctica to witness total solar eclipses as far as China and Gabon, Africa. An active international speaker, Michael has given presentations in Europe, Asia, and the U.S. Currently, he is pursuing an intense interest in archeoastronomy.
Linda Telesco
CIO - Linda is an award-winning marketing, communications, writing, and editorial professional with experience in journalism, advertising, public relations, education, and corporate communications. She has worked for Movado, The Record (newspaper), Orechio Communications, and several advertising agencies. Linda also served as media director for the United States branch of the Society of African Missions (SMA), an international Catholic missionary organization with headquarters in Rome and missions throughout Africa. She is currently a marketing and communications writer for Passaic County Community College. Linda received her MA in English from Seton Hall University where she also taught composition as an adjunct instructor. She is excited and honored to be part of the BEGST team.
Isaiah Craig
Graphics Specialist - Isaiah leads the creative process with a combination of knowledge and experience in diverse areas. His expertise covers logo design, web design, photo manipulation, graphic design, and video editing. Plus, he is always up for a challenge. In one of his major accomplishments, Isaiah worked with Prudential Real Estate Investors (PREI) to implement a rebrand. He also designed, launched, and managed many websites for clients in a variety of fields, such as environmental safety, youth coaching, personal training, e-commerce, stock market, and many more. Isaiah now serves as creative director of his own marketing/advertising startup where, in addition to fulfilling client needs, he also seeks to help young entrepreneurs take their first steps and provides them with valuable insight gathered from his personal and professional experiences. When it comes to the creative arts, Isaiah says, "There are no impossibilities just challenges – and stepping up to tackle those challenges is the fun part.” Isaiah received his Bachelor of Arts degree (Graphic Design concentration) at Felician College (now University), where he provides assistance with apparel and design projects, and continues to speak to the next generation.
Jon Alwen
BAFTA- nominated Executive Producer (feature documentary ‘One Deadly Weekend in America’) and a regular member of BAFTA jury panels. Jon is the founder and CEO of an independent production company, Astronaut Films. Based in London, England but with a global outlook, our focus is premium documentaries for the International and UK markets. Focused on find and tell the world’s most interesting stories and work with the best directors. Astronaut are rep’d by ICM Partners.