On Thursday, April 6, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) raised $4.93 million at the SEO Annual Awards Dinner. Beneath the famous blue whale, around 1,000 guests partied for a cause at the American Museum of Natural History, and honored three outstanding leaders in business and philanthropy: Joe Plumeri; Robert F. Smith; and Cesar Conde.

The SEO Annual Awards Dinner was held in the Hall of Ocean Life, and the evening was led by Emcee, Gayle King, of CBS This Morning and editor-at-large for O, the Oprah Magazine. Michael L. Corbat, Chief Executive Officer, Citi, served as Dinner Chairman.

Funds raised at the event will support SEO’s three programs which provide educational and career opportunities to underserved and underrepresented young people. SEO’s flagship program, SEO Scholars, is a free eight-year academic program that gets underserved public high school students to and through college – with a 90% college graduation rate. The program serves more than 1,500 students in New York City and San Francisco, with a goal of serving over 2,000 by 2021.

Click through for an inside look and go HERE for more photos by Sunny Norton!