Democratizing Social Impact: Dominic Kalms '06, CEO of GVNG

Dominic Kalms knows all about impact. As the founder and CEO of GVNG, a proprietary technology platform that enables individuals and companies to start and run their own nonprofit projects instantly, he empowers people to make a difference in their local communities and around the world. His commitment to strengthening the social fabric has put him on a high-profile path to fostering sustainable change – a path that has its origins at Milken.

 

“I knew early on I wanted to do something in the public policy realm, and in high school I studied government, economics and history,” Dominic recalls. “Milken is where my love for civics really began.”

 

It was also where he built the foundation of knowledge, ambition and drive that has fueled his academic and professional success. “At Milken, you’re surrounded by students who are smart, and it pushes you to attain their level of intelligence,” he says. “The message you take away is that it’s cool to do well in school.”

 

That message served Dominic well as an undergraduate at New York University (NYU), and it continued to propel him forward through his graduate work in international affairs at Columbia. “There’s no question I was prepared for the rigors of an Ivy League education because of the work I did at Milken,” he notes. “The hardest class I’ve ever taken is AP History with Ms. Guth, and that is still true to this day, even after NYU and Columbia.”

 

After completing his master’s degree, Dominic went to work for the Afghan Mission to the United Nations (UN), then took a position in the office of the chairman of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee and ultimately landed at Global Philanthropy Group, a private consulting firm where he created philanthropic strategies for prominent celebrities, corporations and high net worth individuals. From there, he launched GVNG, which has helped allocate millions of dollars to worthy causes since its founding in 2016.

 

“In the last year alone, donations to domestic charities in the US amounted to nearly $430 billion. My goal was to help people find easier, more effective ways to raise and distribute philanthropic dollars,” Dominic says. GVNG struck an immediate chord with the public, generating favorable coverage from prominent news outlets like Forbes, the Hollywood Reporter and the Daily Mail and attracting thousands of users including high profile figures such as Richard Branson, Val Kilmer, Rick Fox, Miley Cyrus and many more. “I was only 27 years old, and suddenly I was building this company and raising millions in venture capital financing,” he says. “It was incredibly exciting.”

 

With his enterprise expanding, Dominic is perpetually on the go, but his ties to Milken keep him grounded. “I have traveled a lot – to Cuba, Morocco, Guatemala, Budapest, Belize, Russia, all over Europe. I’ve probably been to 40 or 50 countries at this point, but I’ve yet to encounter the same type of amazing, tight-knit community that Milken creates,” he says. “I built really lasting bonds there –my best friend from high school is still my best friend today. I even had the honor of introducing him to his wife, a decade after we left Milken. Now that is true friendship and real community!”

 

As someone who has dedicated his career to encouraging philanthropic investment, Dominic is especially grateful for the investment Milken made in him. “The things I took with me from Milken will undoubtedly serve me all my life,” he says. “I couldn’t have asked for a better education.”