Virginia’s colleges and universities spend about $1.3 billion on research and development annually, a total that has increased more than 68 percent over nearly a decade. But the state has made only marginal gains in its national standing, rising just one spot, to 15th place among all states, in the high-stakes race to innovate and train the workforce of the future — a trend the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia finds ominous. Further, only two schools — Virginia Tech at 43rd and the University of Virginia at 60th — raised their national rankings to a compet...