IOWA CITY - University of Iowa president Sally Mason has fired two officials who were faulted for their response to an alleged sexual assault involving two former University of Iowa football players.

Mason spoke with KCRG TV9, and said Phillip Jones and Marcus Mills rejected her offer for resignations earlier this week, so she fired the two on Tuesday.

The two men faced sharp criticism in an independent review of the university's response to the alleged assault. The review's findings were released last week.

Among the criticism, the report said Jones lied to the victims mother when asked if he knew anything about the incident.

The report faults Mills for trying to represent the University as a legal counsel, and at the same time trying to be a contact person for the victim. The report said that was a major conflict of interest, which may have lead to communication complications.

The president of the university's Student Government said he expects more fallout surrounding the school's response to the alleged assault.

"There's a culture, and I think they're, not only in Student Services, but also in Athletics, maybe we need to reevaluate some of the people who are doing their jobs, or maybe not doing their jobs," said Maison Blean, U I Student Government President.

Former Iowa football players Abe Satterfield and Cedric Everson face charges in the sexual assault case, which stems from an incident in October 2008. They are scheduled to stand trial on Nov. 3.

University of Iowa Press Release:
University of Iowa President Sally Mason today announced the termination of employment of Phillip Jones, UI vice president for student services, and Marcus Mills, UI vice president for legal affairs and general counsel.

Mason requested resignations from Jones and Mills earlier this week, but when her requests were declined, she terminated their employment. The actions came in the wake of a report last week to the Iowa Board of Regents, State of Iowa that was critical of the UI's response to an alleged sexual assault in Hillcrest Residence Hall on Oct. 14, 2007. The Stolar Partnership, a St. Louis law firm hired by the Board of Regents, State of Iowa to conduct an independent review of the UI's response, found "numerous and substantial flaws in not only the response of the University of Iowa to the alleged sexual assault at issue, but also in its policies, procedures and practices regarding the same." Both Mills and Jones were singled out for criticism for their individual responses to the sexual assault.

Mason also announced two interim appointments. Carroll J. Reasoner, a shareholder and senior vice president with the Cedar Rapids law firm of Shuttleworth & Ingersoll, will serve as interim vice president of legal affairs and general counsel. Tom Rocklin, UI vice provost, will serve as interim vice president for student services.

"Carroll Reasoner and Tom Rocklin are exemplary leaders, and I am certain that they will help restore confidence in the university," Mason said. "I am grateful that they have agreed to serve the university at this critical time."

Reasoner earned her law degree from the UI. In 1991, she was the first woman and youngest to serve as the president of the Iowa State Bar Association. She has served on the state judicial nominating commission selecting individuals for appointment to the Supreme Court of Iowa. Reasoner has been recognized by listings in Who's Who in American Law, Who's Who in American Women and Who's Who in Emerging Leaders; recognized by the Des Moines Register as an Up and Comer, and has been ranked in the Best Lawyers in America for over 20 years. Additionally, she has been listed in Super Lawyers and is recognized in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business. She has received many honors, including the Award of Merit, the highest award granted by the Iowa State Bar Association. She is also a fellow in the American Bar Foundation and the Iowa State Bar Foundation.

Reasoner also has been active in her community and the state of Iowa. She has been involved with the Friends of the Cedar Rapids Public Library, served as chairman of the building committee for the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, and served on the board of the United Way. She has served as a trustee of the board of Cornell College and the chairman of the Linn County Regional Planning Commission. She was the chairman of the board of St. Luke's Hospital and helped build the Iowa Health System, a billion dollar integrated health system and was its chairman for three years. She has been president of Downtown Rotary and chairman of the UI Foundation. She is currently a board member of the Cedar Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, the UI Foundation, a trustee for Waypoint and the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, chairman of the Cedar Rapids Downtown District, a member of the Cedar Rapids Airport Commission and a commissioner on the Rebuild Iowa Commission.

Rocklin currently serves as vice provost and dean of the University College. He earned the A.B. degree in psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1977 and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in psychology at Northwestern University in 1980 and 1981, respectively. After five years as a faculty member in the psychology department at Texas Christian University, he joined the faculty of the UI College of Education in 1986, rising to the rank of professor in 1996. He served as chair of psychological and quantitative foundations in the College of Education and founding director of the Center for Teaching. He has taught courses in educational psychology and research methodology and his research has examined the role of test anxiety in computerized adaptive testing. He is a fellow of the American Psychological Association.

He joined central administration as interim associate provost for faculty development in 2004 and was appointed associate provost for undergraduate education and dean of the University College on July 1, 2006, and was named senior associate provost in April 2007. As vice provost he oversees UI academic support services including the Office of Admissions, the Office of the Registrar, the Academic Advising Center, Student Financial Aid, the Center for Teaching, Evaluation and Exam Services, Civic Engagement Program, and programs that fall under the University College organizational unit, including the Honors Program, College Transition, Career Center programs, study abroad and military science and aerospace studies.

Mason is scheduled to appear Thursday before the Board of Regents to provide specific responses to the recommendations in the Stolar report.

Email Justin Foss at Justin.Foss@kcrg.com