We encourage submissions from social work students, frontline practitioners, clinicians,
supervisors, administrators, educators, researchers, policy advocates, and community organizers.
Our goal is to amplify voices representing a wide range of practice settings, populations served,
career stages, and lived experiences, while ensuring representation from urban, suburban, and rural
communities throughout New York State.
Across New York State, social workers continue to demonstrate that meaningful change is not
achieved through a single moment, but through sustained commitment, courageous advocacy, and
purposeful leadership. As the NASW-NY Chapter marks more than a year since its historic unification
in July 2025, this milestone reflects the strength and possibility that emerge when professionals
across the state come together with a shared vision. Every day, social workers navigate complex
systems, champion policies that advance equity, and stand alongside individuals, families, and
communities facing unprecedented challenges. Their work reflects a profession that refuses to stand
still and a unified chapter committed to moving the profession forward together.
Momentum for Change: Leading with Purpose recognizes the resilience and determination that
define social work while emphasizing the importance of looking ahead. It celebrates not only the
collective momentum generated by social workers advocating for social justice, elevating marginalized
voices, embracing innovation, and strengthening the profession for future generations, but also the
momentum created through the Chapter's unification—a shared commitment to collaboration, connection,
and a stronger voice for social workers across New York State. Whether influencing legislation in
Albany, expanding access to behavioral health services, mentoring emerging professionals, fostering
interdisciplinary partnerships, or responding to the evolving needs of communities across urban,
suburban, and rural New York, social workers are moving the profession, and the people they serve,
forward.
This theme invites readers to reflect on the progress already made while inspiring continued
action. It underscores the belief that every conversation, every client served, every policy advanced,
every collaborative partnership, and every act of advocacy contributes to lasting, systemic change.
As the profession prepares for the opportunities and challenges ahead, Momentum for Change: Leading
with Purpose affirms that New York's social workers are not simply responding to the future—they are
shaping it together through unified leadership, shared purpose, and collective action.
This theme positions the Fall/Winter issue as both a celebration of the profession's perseverance
and the continued momentum generated by the NASW-NY Chapter's first year as a unified organization.
It serves as a call to lead with vision, purpose, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to
social justice as we build an even stronger future for social work across New York State.