Who is Priya Shah, subject of Chicago mural, founder of nonprofit using art to teach empathy to kids

ByAngela Chen WLS logo
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Who Priya Shah, nonprofit founder and subject of Chicago mural?
Priya Shah is the founder of The Simple Good, a Chicago a non-profit that uses art to teach empathy to K-12 students, and subject of a West Loop mural.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Priya Shah is the CEO and founder of The Simple Good, a Chicago a non-profit that uses art to facilitate discussion and teach empathy for students from kindergarten through the end of high school.

If you've never heard Shah's name before but find she seems familiar, there's a good reason for that: there is a massive painted mural portrait of her in the West Loop.

Born with one hand, Shah didn't allow other people's expectation of her to hinder what she wanted to do.

Her passion for nonprofit work, which eventually led to the founding of The Simple Good, began in high school when she volunteered at Mother Theresa's orphanage. Her experience volunteering, a love of art, and her mother's message of helping others fueled Shah's mission to help Chicagoans see their own good.

Shah has spoken in TEDx, was a Forbes 30 for 30 finalist, and has won multiple awards for her leadership.