{"url":"https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-02-26-sp-679-story.html","title":"Ventura's Hull Gauges Victory in Grade Points","domain":"latimes.com","imageUrl":"https://images.pexels.com/photos/6763804/pexels-photo-6763804.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&h=650&w=940","pexelsSearchTerm":"college basketball coach","category":"Sports","language":"en","slug":"0ba73c6f","id":"0ba73c6f-bd89-49a2-bc86-e55d05af50a1","description":"Ventura College academic adviser Becky Hull helps athletes meet strict NCAA transfer rules with personalized plans.","summary":"## TL;DR\n- Ventura College academic adviser Becky Hull helps athletes meet strict NCAA transfer rules with personalized plans.\n- In seven years, **45 of 47** basketball players earned Associate degrees; some minor sports hit **100%** graduation.\n- Her work shows junior colleges can turn underprepared athletes into real students ready for four-year schools.\n\n## The story at a glance\nVentura College, the only local junior college with a full-time academic athletic adviser, has boosted athlete graduation rates under **Becky Hull**, who oversees **460** athletes this semester. The piece profiles Hull's methods amid tougher 1987 California rules and NCAA standards pushing more marginal high school athletes to junior colleges. It highlights success like ex-Pirate **DiJon Bernard** transferring to Cal State Fullerton with strong grades. This comes as state commissioner **Walter Rilliet** praises model programs like Ventura's.\n\n## Key points\n- California junior colleges, numbering **107**, adopted 1987 recommendations for academic advisers and stricter eligibility after NCAA ended academic havens at four-year schools.\n- Hull, holding required master's degrees in counseling and physical education plus coaching experience, creates \"education game plans,\" checks progress, and ensures transfer credits.\n- She briefs teams like football candidates upfront; half often drop out for easier spots, but others choose Ventura for its academic rigor.\n- **NCAA** now demands **2.0 GPA** in **11 core courses** and **700 SAT** from high school seniors; others need junior college Associate degrees for Division I transfers.\n- Bernard, once a C/D student ineligible for Division I, earned **3.1 GPA** at Ventura with **3.8** one semester, crediting Hull and coach **Philip Mathews**.\n\n## Details and context\nTighter rules mean junior colleges get more academically weak athletes who once slid through without real study. Hull compares school skills to sports drills: build them step by step. She wakes up athletes expecting just to \"play softball,\" stressing student first.\n\nBefore advisers, overworked counselors gave bad info, costing scholarships. Ventura lacks statewide stats, but Hull's record stands out: near-perfect basketball grads over seven years.\n\nHer approach includes hugs for good grades and tears at awards, proving \"no such thing as a dumb jock—just untapped potential.\"\n\n## Key quotes\n- \"You do it the Becky Hull way, you get your goal. Do it your way—who knows?\" — **Becky Hull**\n- \"There is no such thing as a ‘dumb jock.’ There are only athletes who have not been brought up to their potential.\" — **Becky Hull**\n- \"Becky gave me the confidence that I wouldn’t have had.\" — **DiJon Bernard**\n\n## Why it matters\nJunior colleges face pressure to produce educated athletes, not just players, reshaping the path from high school to Division I. Readers see how one adviser prevents scholarship losses and builds real skills for transfers. Watch if more California schools hire full-time advisers like Hull amid ongoing NCAA pushes.[[1]](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-02-26-sp-679-story.html)[[2]](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-02-26-sp-579-story.html)","hashtags":["#juniorcollege","#sports","#academics","#ncaa","#athletics","#education"],"sources":[{"url":"https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-02-26-sp-679-story.html","title":"Original article"},{"url":"https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-02-26-sp-579-story.html","title":""}],"viewCount":2,"publishedAt":"2026-04-06T18:16:38.651Z"}