About

SueAnn Staton is the Founder & Director of Stand a Chance, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting children growing up with an incarcerated parent by providing scholarships, mentorships, and various character/skill building programs. She launched the organization in July 2024 and secured federal approval in January 2025. With a small, dynamic team of volunteers, she is quickly growing into a solid mission for what she calls the “forgotten victims of the system”. She is determined to provide them with opportunities they never imagined ---"real hope and big dreams" is the tagline for the organization. Her mission is rooted in restoring hope and providing opportunities to children facing extraordinary loss and a lifetime of stigma. Most importantly, with a college education🎓 and newfound confidence they may be able to break the cycle of ending up in the justice system themselves👮🏻‍♂️.

Sue Ann's idea spawned from attending the Angola Prison Rodeo in Louisiana. Angola is considered to be one of the most notorious maximum security prisons in the country. For inmates, it is a break in the monotony of doing hard time in a grim place that most men sentenced there will never leave there. At the rodeo, she observed a young man named Tony reunite with his father. He was sent to Angola Prison when Tony was a small child. Their connection that day was profound; and it was the humble beginnings of Stand a Chance.

(link to video clip) https://www.tiktok.com/@southlacajun/video/7497044696225697054

SueAnn will tell you that she is way overeducated, but she loves school, obtaining several degrees and certifications in recent years. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism & Mass Communication 👩🏼‍🎓 from the University of Oklahoma in 1991. She has extensive experience as an advertising copywriter, then freelanced for more than 20 years doing graphic design & production, website & digital design, creative concepts & branding, and special event campaigns, while doing much of the work pro-bono for schools or non-profit organizations. She describes herself as highly-organized and driven with an entrepreneurial mindset. "I constantly come up with big ideas, and then I am tenacious enough to make them happen. But my big ideas aren't always good ideas. Stand a Chance is a fantastic idea:" Her professional background also includes experience in behavioral health and counseling after obtaining a Master's in Forensic Psychology in 2023 👩🏼‍🎓 from Southern New Hampshire University and a Certification in Addiction Studies from Liberty University. She also earned a Suicide Prevention Certification from East Central University in Oklahoma. Then in 2025, she received a Certification in Nonprofit Leadership & Management from LSU⚜️, which incorporates her assets and abilities together in a compassionate, structured leadership role.

Originally from Oklahoma, SueAnn spent most of her life in Dallas. She now calls New Orleans home as she fell in love with the city's illustrious history and elaborate architecture. "But the people here make it home---from my homeless friends on Canal to my new network of friends and volunteers. The right people are priceless." she says. Looking ahead, she envisions renovating one of New Orleans’ historic abandoned buildings into a community resource center for at-risk youth and homeless teenagers—providing computer access for job applications as well as the FAFSA. She will provide career counseling, résumé workshops and mentorship programs to start them out at a younger age≈. "Homeless teenagers with guns 🥺---disturbing in so many ways!" Sue Ann emphasized the magnitude of "children" 🫣 charged with murder or robbery just trying to survive on the streets of New Orleans as well as other cities. She says, "Get to them before they go sideways! Hook them up with a strong role model 👊🏼 in a safe, empowering environment through a mentorship program." Sue Ann is also certified in mental health assessments,👩🏼‍💻 which are admissible as evidence in a courtroom setting. Hence, she is qualified as an expert witness ⚖️ for parole hearings, child custody hearings, competency hearings, etc. More importantly, identifying mental health condition so that the individual can be effectively medicated 💊 for the condition. Mental illness, especially substance abuse disorder, is often at the root of most social problems. In fact, the percentage of the homeless with diagnosable(so many refuse to go to doctor) mental illness is real close to 100. With all these plans and a vision, Sue Ann Staton continues building Stand a Chance with meaningful actions and a commitment to higher education, 🎓 because they ALL Stand a Chance.

Credentials

• Suicide Prevention Certification
• Psychological Assessments & Courtroom Testimony
• Mock Trials & Jury Selection
• Adobe Creative Suite
• Graphic Design & Print Production
• Nonprofit Governance
• Grant Writing
• Fundraising Events

Education

• BA in JOURNALISM & MASS COMMUNICATIONS - UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
• MA in FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY - SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY
• GRADUATE CERTIFICATE in ADDICTION STUDIES - LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
• GRADUATE CERTIFICATE in NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT - LSU

Honors & Awards

• Influential Woman

Memberships

• American Psychological Association
• American Counseling Association
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI)
• The New Orleans Athletic Club

Volunteering / Philanthropic Initiatives

• Innocence Project Texas • Genesis Women's Shelter • Ardmore Soup Kitchen • Livingston Parish Food Bank • St. Jude's Community Center New Orleans • New Orleans Mission • Red Cross New Orleans • The Pumpkin Patch Fall 2025

What do you attribute your success to?

It is still the beginning, but I certainly think it will be a success. I can only take credit for the idea, and it is that---because it's a travesty that nobody can discount. It is such a worthwhile cause.

What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?

“Anyone who ever gave you confidence, you owe them a lot,” written by Truman Capote in his 1958 novella, Breakfast at Tiffany’s. This line emphasizes the immense value of mentors, friends, or loved ones who build up your self-belief, suggesting that such emotional support is a significant debt of gratitude.

I love this quote so much that I made it into a Mother's Day Card last year. Growing up, my mother instilled a confidence in me that can be unstoppable. Nature or Nurture? I could have been born that way. Not certain, but she told me that I can do anything that I set out to do. If I want it, I can get there. That's a huge gift to instill that level of confidence in a child. Now, I wish I had done more, but we all have those regrets. And my mother would say that she failed with me---"Where did I go wrong?"

Sadly, I meet so many kids that grew up without encouragement of any kind. They have family members that insult them or call them degrading names. I had a roommate last year that would shoot down everything I suggested. I pointed it out and asked her why. She thought for a minute, and said, That's how I grew up, with somebody always telling me I can't".

What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?

Don't judge. And don't just say you don't judge, because we all do it. Rather, put yourself in their shoes. Get down to earth and reality if you want to truly understand the homeless living in encampments or the battered women that continually go back to the abuser or the heroin addicts living on their doomed merry go round or the unmedicated Schizophrenic veteran talking to imaginary people outside Walgreens. They all have a story, and it is a real story. Are you going to hear them? Do you feel empathy or is it just sympathy? I think the industry picks us...with almost any career. I think you get a calling...or like with graphic design, it just came so natural and I enjoy every minute of it. On the other hand, I am clumsy with numbers and too squeemish too ever be a nurse, because that is a fantastic career.

What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?

Unfortunately, it comes down to money. I have so many things I want to implement, so many ideas...but we must have funding to do anything more. And of course, more funding means more recipients of scholarships---more kids headed toward a prosperous future.

What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?

I value my perspective and compassion in any given situation. Through the experiences that life has dealt me, I have compassion for people at any level. I try to understand the issue and how they must feel. I have been at the top of the food chain and I have certainly been at the bottom, or somewhere in between trying to survive myself, with people trying to be on my food chain Most people can't comprehend how a guy that made six figures last year is sleeping on the floor at the bus station tonight. This doesn't make sense to most people, but I get it entirely. Mental health and chemical dependency come into play, but sometimes it is just the hand you were dealt. Bad things happen to good people. And good things happen to bad people. I pay attention to all of them. Life can spin on a dime, or at least my life does. If I am anything, it is resilient. If I end up on a park bench one night, I can promise you I won't be there the next night. I'm a survivor of so many things, but I don't cling to labels and justifications. I trudge through it in my big girl boots and big girl panties. But throughout our journey, we must never forget those that held out their hand to us, pulled us up out of that muddy ditch. The help might have been a ride down the road, a five dollar bill or a sandwich they gave, but pay it forward, Ladies! That is my insight. Nothing is more rewarding in life than helping the next one out of that rabbit hole.