Teen Journalism Institute: Trevor Picanco’s big-city dreams fuel his pursuit of writing

As a high school intern at The Spokesman-Review, Trevor Picanco is a well-versed writer with the potential to excel in the future in a number of fields.

“I am a huge consumer of media, and that has allowed me to craft a very specific style of prose,” Picanco said.

Picanco is one of eight students selected for this year’s Teen Journalism Institute, a program at the paper funded for the past three years by Bank of America. He said he values relaying information in a concise manner.

Picanco enjoys arts and culture, and the majority of his free time is absorbed by reading and writing.

Picanco is the youngest of three and was born and raised in Spokane after his parents moved from California in 2004. His mom grew up in Spokane and raised all three of her children here, though Trevor’s sisters were born in California.

He describes his relationship with his family as extremely close. Picanco appreciates his hometown and the architecture of his family’s neighborhood, the South Hill. His favorite traits of Spokane are the trees and the “long-standing social community.”

Picanco appreciates the hills and bluffs of Spokane. He loves the parks and lakes in the city, although he considers himself more of a big-city person.

“Geographically and architecturally, there are many things I appreciate about Spokane,” Picanco said.

He plans to move to a bigger city after high school. His preference would be a city on the northeast coast of the United States, such as Boston or New York City.

Picanco plans on attending college, potentially Northeastern University or Sarah Lawrence College.

Picanco learned of the internship through a close friend who was one of last year’s interns.

Picanco’s communication skills, as well as being an editor of his school’s yearbook, are some of many qualifications.

Picanco hopes to gain an opportunity to write about topics he would not typically be able to cover. He looks forward to making connections, specifically in government.

“Since I am interested in English, this internship will give me an opportunity to learn more about journalistic writing and if it is something that I want to pursue in the future,” he said.

Q: What is your favorite elective and why?

A: My favorite elective is yearbook because it is a creative outlet, and I enjoy working with other people on our school’s yearbook design.