TO OUR READERS

Today’s Girl Scouts are tomorrow’s leaders.

That’s the thrust of Features writer Elaine D. Briseño’s cover story about the venerable organization that has been guiding young women into adulthood for more than a century. You’re as likely to find badges for money management and website design as you are for cooking and camping.

Don’t worry, they still sell cookies, but now those boxes of Thin Mints and Samoas are likely the result of a detailed business model, planned and executed by the girls themselves.

We also explore the world of arts education in New Mexico, a state known for its artistic and cultural offerings. Local schools are training the artists of the future.

Assistant Arts Editor Kathaleen Roberts profiles the new director of the University of New Mexico Art Gallery, Arif Khan. Khan, who grew up in Albuquerque and whose career has taken him to Atlanta, Charleston, W.Va., and London, among other locales, is happy to return to New Mexico.

Roberts also previews the Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival, which this year moves its big white tent to Sandia Resort & Casino.

In Travel, we go looking for a little local color, pointing out the best places around the state to find autumn golds and reds. Whether close to home or a trek into the mountains, New Mexico puts on a show in the fall.

And David Steinberg reviews John Nichols’ latest book, “The Annual Big Arsenal Fishing Contest!”