Euclid Alumni Take 5 with Renée DeLuca Dolan '84

Renée Deluca Dolan, Euclid High School Class of 1984, President and Founder of Contempo, a local marketing and branding design firm.

By day, Renée DeLuca Dolan is usually found amongst Cleveland’s top CEOs and business leaders. By night, she’s hiking or walking with her dogs or watching her son play sports. Renée is proud to say she also makes dinner for her family most nights—she’s a closet chef! As the founder of Contempo, a marketing and branding design firm, she has always had an entrepreneurial spirit and a heart for helping women succeed in business which prompted her to create the Female Entrepreneur Summit, an annual day of learning for Northeast Ohio business women. Renée also enjoys networking and special events, so she developed and published Cleveland Business Connects Magazine for 10 years and created the CBC Magazine Connectors Choice Awards to honor Clevelanders in the special events profession. She’s a distinguished alumna of Kent State University, where she serves on the Business Advisory Board, and was just recognized with a Spirit of Women in Business Award. She’s a hiker, an oenophile, a devoted volunteer for Northeast Ohio Adoption Services and she tells us she was a competitive drill team ice skater at Euclid's C.E. Orr Ice Arena in her youth.   

Where did you grow up in Euclid? I grew up on East 195th street off of Euclid Avenue. I went to Indian Hills Elementary School and lived two doors down from the Leduc family. The Martins and Aspinwalls lived on the next street, East 196th, and I used to pick up John Barndt for school in the nearby apartments when we were in high school.  

Where did you go to school before Euclid High? I went to Euclid Central Junior High and enjoyed my time there. I walked to school by Martin’s Freeze and fish and chips everyday! We rode bikes to Sims Park often and spent quite a bit of time hanging out at the Euclid Creek near Central Junior High School, and at the Euclid Creek Reservation off Highland Road. Sandra Jaksa, Dianna Dunlevy, Mary Kay Barnes, Sue Lentz, and Shelley Aspinwall all come to mind when I reminisce about junior high days.  

What teacher or class do you most remember and why? Ms. Araca was my favorite teacher (although there were many). She stands out for various reasons, but primarily because she was a pioneer to us. She had a successful career in fine art and at Euclid High she was a great inspiration in my life for following a career in the field. She talked to us about commercial art and helped start that department at the high school before I knew what commercial art even was. I had the honor of spending four periods a day in art class with Laura Wagner, Denise Martin and Sue Buetner under the guidance of Ms. Araca.

Did you have a favorite spot in Euclid, and what did you like about it? A favorite spot in Euclid would have been the hill at McDonald’s on East 222nd and Euclid Avenue. We spent most fall weekends there after football games and enjoyed sled riding there on the weekends in the winter, and we would meet the “boys” there. We also spent a fair amount of time at my house. My mom was “pretty cool” back then and we had parties for significant birthdays, holiday parties and other big events.   

What, if anything, about your Euclid High experience would you do over? I wouldn’t do much over, it was a wonderful experience for me really. 

If you would like to recommend a Euclid High School graduate to be featured in Take 5, please contact the Euclid Public Schools Alumni Association office at (216) 797-7895 or alumni@euclidschools.org.