Governor Abigail Spanberger today announced a $2.4 million investment in Virginia’s life sciences ecosystem through Virginia Catalyst’s highly competitive grant program. Virginia Catalyst was founded in 2013 as Virginia’s research consortium through the efforts of the Virginia General Assembly and five of Virginia’s premiere research institutions. With this latest round of funding — the organization’s 19th since December 2013 — Virginia Catalyst has awarded 75 grants totaling $40 million, resulting in nearly $60 million in matching funds and more than $700 million in follow-on funding. To be eligible for a grant, projects must demonstrate substantive collaboration between at least two of the universities that make up the research consortium: the University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Tech, George Mason University, and Old Dominion University. VBHRC’s work is funded by the Virginia General Assembly and five public member institutions: the University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Tech, George Mason University, and Old Dominion University.