In order to promote a coordinated system of higher education in Arkansas and to assure an orderly and effective development of each of the publicly supported institutions of higher education, the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall have the power and duty:
(1) To conduct or cause to be made such studies, surveys, and evaluations of postsecondary education as the board believes necessary to carry out its duties, to include, but not be limited to:
(A) Studies of:
(i) Space utilization and development of guidelines for space utilization;
(ii) Manpower needs and their implications for program development; and
(iii) Programs for purposes of identifying and reducing unnecessary program duplication and identifying needs for new programs;
(B) Analysis of:
(i) Class size, faculty loads, and cost of instruction, sabbatical leave, and other fringe benefits; and
(ii) Enrollments, extension programs, sources of students, and retention of students; and
(C) Advise institutions of plans and needed improvements; and
(2) To conduct continuing studies as to public universities and colleges in all matters affecting these institutions and from time to time submit recommendations to the Governor, the General Assembly, and each institution of higher learning based upon its findings, together with recommended plans for implementing such recommendations.