AOSW Connections
Editorial Team
Editor-in-Chief
Amy Colver, MSSA, MA, LISW
Editor
Katherine Easton, MSW, LCSW, OSW-C
AOSW Communications Director
Brittany Hahn, LCSW
Managing Editor
Patricia Sullivan
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2025 Themes
February: Workplace & Culture
May: Therapeutic Techniques
August: Palliative Care
November: Caregivers
President’s Message

Dear AOSW Members!
As your new president, let me introduce myself. I am Dr. Linda Mathew. I have been an oncology social worker for 24 years. My full-time job is that of a manager at a large cancer center on the East Coast. I have been a member of AOSW for almost 20 years. Never in my greatest dreams would I have thought that I would be the president of AOSW. I am truly honored to be in this role. If you are new to AOSW, welcome home. For anyone who is new to the field of service in oncology, I would like to convey that you are not alone. You are a part of a team of dedicated service providers who work tirelessly to care for others.
We have so much to be grateful for as AOSW members because our organizational committees strive to support us. Everyone, from our Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to our State Representatives work tirelessly to make sure that all of us have a voice, so that we can invest our time in areas we are most passionate about. Through a collaboration of our DEI and Membership committees, we are improving the recruitment and retention of our members by valuing the intersection of race, sexual-identity, gender-identity, religion, and age, to ensure that these identities continue to be fully represented within AOSW. The Education Committee is invaluable in selecting a wide range of webinars to help members fulfill licensing requirements. Our Advocacy Committee works strategically to improve policies impacting our work. Our Research Committee supports studies that positively impact the care of our patients and families. Finally, the Communication Committee oversees daily updates through SWON and our wonderful newsletter.
One of our objectives in 2025 is to have an amazing in-person AOSW conference in Atlanta, during which the time we share is productive and educational. My hope is that all members attend and that participants feel revived and inspired. On that note, I would like to offer a word of thanks to our Conference Planning Committee for their hard work and commitment.
Another objective for this year is to develop partnerships with like-minded organizations as we work together to accomplish goals and improve the lives of all people. In the wise words of Jane Addams, “The good we secure for ourselves is precarious and uncertain until it is secured for all of us and incorporated into our common life.”
Finally, we must respectfully honor our fiduciary responsibility to sustain the financial health of our organization. I invite you to join me and our board of directors, in working towards each of these goals.
Linda Mathew, DSW, MSW, LCSW-R
About the Author

Linda Mathew, DSW, MSW, LCSW-R
Manager, Department of Social WorkMemorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, New York
mathewl@mskcc.org
Linda Mathew, DSW, MSW, LCSW-R, is a Social Work Manager. She is certified in cognitive behavioral therapy, meaning-centered psychotherapy, trauma-informed therapy, and palliative and end-of-life care. Dr. Mathew earned her master’s and doctorate ...
Read Full Author Bio

Linda Mathew, DSW, MSW, LCSW-R
Manager, Department of Social WorkMemorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, New York
mathewl@mskcc.org
Linda Mathew, DSW, MSW, LCSW-R, is a Social Work Manager. She is certified in cognitive behavioral therapy, meaning-centered psychotherapy, trauma-informed therapy, and palliative and end-of-life care. Dr. Mathew earned her master’s and doctorate degrees from New York University’s Silver School of Social Work (NYUSSW). In her time at MSK, she co-created REACH for Caregivers and co-led the Talking with Children About Cancer Programs. Dr. Mathew is an antiracist practitioner and an active member of the Social Work Department’s Antiracism Committee. She completed the MSK Emerging Leadership Program in 2022.
Dr. Mathew has received many leadership awards, including the prestigious Mid-Career Exemplary Leadership Award and Excellence in Clinical Practice Award from the Social Work Hospice and Palliative Care Network and the National Association of Social Workers.
Dr. Mathew is a master trainer for ESPEC: Educating Social Workers in Palliative and End-of-life Care and serves on their board. She serves on several editorial boards. She has presented locally and nationally; and she is a published author. Dr. Mathew believes in giving back to the field of social work through her role as an adjunct faculty member of NYUSSW and Smith College Palliative and End-of-Life programs.
Dr. Mathew is the President of Association of Oncology Social Work.
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President's Message