All of the original winners of this year's Virginian-Pilot Student Gallery contest, who never received their awards because the first-place art depicted nudity, are getting cash prizes, thanks to a private fundraising drive.

More than 30 contributors sent a total of about $3,000 to Ann Dearsley-Vernon of Norfolk and a friend, who started collecting money to replace the awards from the high school art contest's initial judging in late March.

Bruce Bradley, then publisher of The Virginian-Pilot, which sponsors the Student Gallery, rejected that round of judging because first place had gone to a nude self-portrait of the 17-year-old girl. He also rejected a second round of judging because, again, the first-place winner depicted nudity.

The first judge was Aaron De Groft, director of the Muscarelle Museum of Art at the College of William and Mary. His top choice - Nancy "Beth" Reid, a senior at Churchland High School - received $1,000 from the fund drive in an April 8 ceremony at her Portsmouth school.

De Groft had awarded second place to Erin Ayres of Arcadia High School on the Eastern Shore. Erin became the official first-place winner following a third round of judging led by the newspaper's marketing department.

De Groft gave third place to Kimberly Van Dam of Lands-town High School in Virginia Beach. He also named three honorable mentions: Cynthia South of Woodside High School in Newport News; Jamel Johnson of Indian River High School in Chesapeake; and Rusty Painter of Cox High School in Virginia Beach.

This week Dearsley-Vernon sent $300 to Kimberly and $100 to each honorable-mention winner.

Jasmine Childs, a senior at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, was given top prize by a second judge, and was sent a $1,000 check, too.

Dearsley-Vernon said any leftover funds, also collected by Shelley Brooks of Portsmouth, will be donated to the art programs at the high schools of the two rejected winners.

She did not send a check to Erin. She said the consensus was that Erin "was already appropriately recognized with The Pilot's gift of $1,000."

Erin learned she was De Groft's second choice on Wednesday during a field trip to the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, where work by the 62 finalists is on display through Friday. She and her classmates overheard a museum employee say that the official Student Gallery winner was named second by the first judge.

Since learning that Beth Reid was denied her prize, Erin said she "felt bad for the girl, that she's had to go through all of this, too."

She was pleased to hear she was De Groft's second choice, she said Wednesday as she left the museum. "It's not exactly the same excitement. I still am very honored. There was so much good artwork there."

"I think it's an honor just to make it as a finalist in Student Gallery," she said. "I've been trying not to let it worry me."

Teresa Annas, (757) 446-2485, teresa.annas@pilotonline.com