Antonio R. Moreira, vice provost for academic affairs at UMBC, dies

Antonio R. Moreira is remembered as "an amazing human being and was loved by everyone," said Freeman A. Hrabowski III, former president of UMBC.

Antonio R. Moreira, who had dual careers in big pharma and academia, died May 21 of pancreatic cancer at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. The Silver Spring resident was 73.

“Tony was just an amazing human being and was loved by everyone,” said Freeman A. Hrabowski III, who was president of UMBC from 1992 to 2022.

“He was a man of great compassion who took the university to the next level and around the world,” he said. “He was one of the major leaders who took UMBC to a level one and international status.”

Antonio Ribeiro Moreira, son of Emidio da Silva Moreira, a mechanical engineer, and Maria Ribeiro Da Silva Moreira, a homemaker, was born and raised in Porto, Portugal.

Mr. Moreira earned a bachelor’s degree in 1973 from the University of Porto in Portugal.

“My mother, Maria Jose Soares, and my father married in 1973 and emigrated to the United States where he took his master’s degree in 1975 in chemical engineering from the University of Pennsylvania,” said a daughter, Cecilia Moreira Etzel, of Cockeysville.

Two years later, Mr. Moreira obtained his Ph.D. in chemical and biochemical engineering, also from Penn.

From 1977 to 1978, he was a research associate in the department of chemical engineering at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, and then spent the next seven years in various teaching and administrative roles in the department of agricultural and chemical engineering at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

In 1982, he joined International Flavors and Fragrances Inc. in Union Beach, New Jersey, as a group leader in flavor research and development, and later headed the flavor plant process development group.

Mr. Moreira went to work for Schering-Plough Corp. in Union, New Jersey, as associate director for fermentation process development where he was also responsible for the bioengineering laboratory and fermentation pilot plant.

He held several other administrative positions before joining the UMBC faculty in 1990 as director and professor of its chemical and biochemical program.

He had an “outstanding record in the private sector with the unique success of bringing a blockbuster biopharmaceutical product to the market under FDA approval,” according to a UMBC profile of Mr. Moreira.

Mr. Moreira wore several different hats while at UMBC during that time.

From 1990 to 1993, he was acting co-director of the Center for Biotechnology Manufacturing at the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute.

He was chair and professor in the department of chemical and biochemical engineering at UMBC from 1992 to 1995, when he was appointed associate dean of engineering, where he was responsible for the engineering management program and curriculum.

In 1995, Mr. Moreira was promoted to associate provost for academic affairs, where he oversaw and directed such programs as continuing education, instructional technology, strategic alliances and partnerships, interdisciplinary studies, international education services, international programs and engineering management.

From 1997, when he was appointed vice provost for academic affairs, and until his death, Mr. Moreira was a pivotal figure at UMBC where he gained “national and international stature as an innovator and leader in the biotechnology field,” according to a UMBC profile.

“Tony was a bridge builder and was a major player in developing relationships with Whiting-Turner Engineering Co. and was a leader in the Baltimore-Washington corridor,” Mr. Hrabowski said. “He was just a great educator and a spirited man who cared deeply about our students and his colleagues. He was a gentleman in the best sense of the word.”

“Tony and his wife were great ambassadors for Portugal,” Mr. Hrabowski said.

In 2014, the president of Portugal honored Mr. Moreira with the National Order of Public Education and the title of comendador, family members said.

Some of Mr. Moreira’s professional memberships included the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, American Chemical Society, American Society for Engineering Education, and International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering.

In noting his death, the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering said Mr. Moreira was “known for his quiet fortitude. His students, mentees, and peers will remember him for his kindness and mentorship to others. … His approach to leadership was service-oriented and he always led by example.

“Throughout his life, Tony was committed to giving back. He will be remembered by all for his selfless dedication and continued contributions to making a positive difference in the lives of others.”

Mr. Moreira enjoyed reading and traveling by steamship.

“My dad worked all the time for the university, its students, taught graduate classes and served on committees and boardships,” Ms. Etzel said. “He really had little downtime, but when he did, he loved watching professional soccer.”

A celebration of life service was held Tuesday at Memorial Chapel on the campus of the University of Maryland, College Park.

In addition to his daughter, Mr. Moreira is survived by his wife of 50 years, a retired businesswoman, another daughter, Joana Moreira Conklin, of Rockville, and four granddaughters.