In The Press
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The Mendocino Voice: “Cal student brings “Secure Steps” to colleges in the fight against intimate partner violence”
2/26/2025
“Florence Zhu was a freshman at UC Berkeley when she first heard about intimate partner violence (IPV) in her community. Only a year later, Zhu was running her own nonprofit organization, inspired by these stories, to fill the gaps in IPV prevention.”
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MassLive: “National organization working to prevent intimate partner violence comes to Mass.”
2/14/2025
“Secure Steps announced its plans to work with Massachusetts colleges and universities to raise awareness of intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention. The national nonprofit, which is partnered with the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA), was founded in July 2024 by Florence Zhu…”
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The Chronicle: “Combating dating violence on campus”
2/14/2025
“A college student decided to take action against dating violence and created a nonprofit organization.”
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The Bristol Press: “Group helps students access legal info for dealing with relationship violence”
2/10/2025
“ For some, the college experience is a blast, filled with fun, new adventures and love. For others, the romantic part is tainted by dating violence, a plague that touches every school, but is often silenced. A college student decided to take action against dating violence and created a nonprofit organization.”
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The Davis Enterprise: “Secure Steps fights against dating violence”
2/6/2025
“After encountering numerous stories of dating violence on college campuses and observing universities cutting budgets for sexual assault support services, Florence Zhu, a sophomore at UC Berkeley, began to recognize a harsh reality: nearly a quarter of university students experience dating violence, yet there is a significant lack of legal awareness regarding this crucial issue.”
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Los Gatan: Letter to the editor — “Nonprofit combatting dating violence”
1/29/2025
“Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a critical issue on college campuses, where nearly one in five students experience some form of relationship abuse. The combination of newfound independence and academic pressures makes students particularly vulnerable to IPV.”
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Fox News: “Secure Steps foundation aims to offer education and support for survivors”
1/28/2025
“KTVU's Alex Savidge sits down with Florence Zhu, student at UC Berkeley and Founder of Secure Steps-- an organization designed to offer resources and support to survivors of intimate partner violence.”
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48 Hills: “UC Berkeley sophomore creates national organization on intimate partner violence”
1/23/2025
Florence Zhu, a sophomore student at UC Berkeley, has spent her college years hearing disturbing stories from her friends—stories of abuse, sexual violence and intimate partner violence. Last year, the Fremont native decided to do something about it.
“I realized that…[these] encounters I had weren’t isolated instances,” Zhu said.
In June 2024, she founded Secure Steps, a nonprofit based out of Berkeley, now operating in colleges around the nation, bringing educational resources and support to young people facing violence.
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