 Beginning in 1916, Cooper had pushed for more administrative power for his office, but the school board instead reorganized the system in 1919 to make him just one of six department heads.A group called the Tax Reduction Council (or TRC) began attacking Cooper both professionally and personally, arguing that he had spent too much money building schools and offering unnecessary classes and extracurricular activities, and calling for him to be replaced by a younger superintendent.The board decided to hire no new teachers for the 1921–1922 year and laid off some current ones for the first time, and Cooper refused to participate in recommending further budget cuts.