Indianapolis ? The scandal-plagued NCAA is moving swiftly to clean up its image.

On Thursday, the Division I Board of Directors approved a package of sweeping reforms that gives conferences the option of adding more money to scholarship offers, schools the opportunity to award scholarships for multiple years, imposes tougher academic standards on recruits and changes the summer basketball recruiting model.

“It was one of the most aggressive and fullest agendas the board has ever faced,” NCAA President Mark Emmert said. “They moved with dispatch on it, and I think they’re taking positive steps for schools and student-athletes.”

For decades, outsiders have debated whether college scholarships should include more than just the cost of tuition, room and board, books and fees. Now they can.

The board approved a measure allowing conferences to vote on providing up to $2,000 in spending money, or what the NCAA calls the full cost-of-attendance. Emmert insists it is not pay-for-play, merely the reintroduction of a stipend that existed for college athletes until 1972. He also compared it to the stipends received by other students who receive non-athletic scholarships.

Some thought the total amount should have been higher. At the Big Ten’s basketball media day in Chicago, commissioner Jim Delany said studies have shown the average athlete pays roughly $3,000 to $4,000 out of his or her own pocket in college costs.

But many believe the measure is long overdue.

“I think it needs to happen or else I think what’s left of the system itself is going to implode,” said Ohio University professor David Ridpath, past president of The Drake Group, an NCAA watchdog. “We’ve always lost the moral high ground by saying the educational model is what makes this thing go. I think we’re delivering a model that can exploit kids while they’re here.”

Extra money won’t solve all of the NCAA’s problems.

Schools must infer the cost of additional funding and it will have to be doled out equally to men’s and women’s athletes because of Title IX rules. While BCS schools have the money and are expected to swiftly approve additional funding, it may prove too costly for non-BCS schools.

There are fears it will increase the disparity between the haves and the have-nots and could prompt another round of conference realignment.

The board also approved a measure that will give individual schools the authority to award scholarships on a multiple-year basis.

Under the current model, those scholarships are renewed annually and can be revoked for any reason. If adopted, schools could guarantee scholarships for the player’s entire career and would be unable to revoke it based solely on athletic performance. Scholarships could still be pulled for reasons such as poor grades, academic misconduct or other forms of improper behavior.

College Basketball

Grades could derail UConn

Hartford, Conn. — Changes in NCAA rules adopted Thursday would keep defending national champion Connecticut from participating in the 2013 NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

Under the rules adopted by the NCAA’s Division I Board of Directors, a school cannot participate in the 2013 tournament unless it has a two-year average score of 930 or a four-year average of 900 on the NCAA’s annual Academic Progress Rate, which measures the academic performance of student athletes.

Connecticut’s men’s basketball scored 826 for the 2009-10 school year. A UConn official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the number isn’t official until next May, said the score for the 2010-11 school year would be approximately 975.

That would not be high enough. It would give Connecticut a two-year score of 900.5 and a four-year average of 888.5.

Connecticut, which lost two scholarships this season as a result of the latest APR report, sought clarification hoping the NCAA might use numbers from the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years. The 2011-12 numbers are not expected to be released until May 2013, after the tournament is played.

On Wednesday, UConn President Susan Herbst said she was confident that the new rule would not be implemented until schools such as Connecticut have a chance to show they have made improvements.

A&M coach has Parkinson’s

College Station, Texas — Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy said Thursday that he is in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease.

Kennedy took a leave of absence from the team earlier this month to undergo testing after experiencing neck and shoulder pain for several months that led to an inability to sleep regularly. The tests revealed that Kennedy was in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease, a progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects movement.

“I am heeding the advice of my doctors and addressing the disease and its symptoms,” Kennedy said in a statement. “We have begun a long-term treatment plan and recovery. My doctors are encouraged and are telling me I will be able to come back soon.”

Associate head coach Glynn Cyprien took over when Kennedy took his leave and will continue to be in charge of the team.

NBA

Players, owners inch together

New York — NBA owners and players called it an early night Thursday, with both pointing toward Friday as a decisive day for big moves to end the 119-day lockout.

Or not.

After two days of talks about the salary cap system, they will turn their attention back to the division of revenues, which derailed the talks last week.

This time, Commissioner David Stern said the talks had produced enough familiarity and trust “that will enable us to look forward to tomorrow, where we anticipate there will be some important and additional progress — or not.”

“But I think (union executive director Billy Hunter) and I share that view, and we’re looking forward to seeing whether something good can be made to happen.”

The sides again said there was some minor progress on the system issues after about 71/2 hours of talks. They decided to wrap it up and get some rest following a marathon 15-hour session Wednesday, and with union economist Kevin Murphy unavailable Thursday to discuss finances.

Realignment

Boise State, Big East talk

Boise, Idaho — Boise State President Bob Kustra says he had an informative meeting with Big East Conference executives but is in no hurry to make a decision on whether to join the conference. Kustra met Thursday on campus with Big East Commissioner John Marinatto and Nick Carparelli, the league’s senior associate commissioner.