Our first issue of February hits newsstands today! For this week’s feature, Aodhan Beirne documents the efforts of community leaders to help the homeless of Georgetown:

Even for those who do not suffer from mental illness, obstacles abound. For these people, it is tough “to be presentable to get back in the job forces, to find the services that connect you to those jobs, and to be able to get out and do a job search every day,” Witherspoon said. “If someone is not on social security, and is not working, it’s hard to find the money to properly dress yourself, or even get on the bus to find a job.”

Even if they obtain a job, employment may not be enough to afford someone a steady home. This is the situation for Steve, a GMC client, who is employed, but not steadily enough to accrue savings.

On the Editorials page, the editorial board condemns continued Congressional intrusion into the wombs and personal lives of the people of the District of Columbia.

In News, Fatima Taskomur discusses the uneven beginnings for the Center for Student Programs’ new communications platform for student groups, Hoyalink.

In the Sports pages, Tim Shine recaps Georgetown’s much-needed victory last night over the defending champion Connecticut Huskies.

In the Leisure section, Julia Lloyd-George reviews The Bi(g) Life, two solo Performing Arts senior thesis projects that will run in DPAC this weekend and tackle questions of identity and stigma head on.

On Page 13, John Sapunor, Nico Dodd and Cannon Warren have drawn a combination of words and pencil scratches that look quite like comics!

And in Voices, Parks and Recreation fanatic Iris Kim explains why she’s voting for Pawnee’s own Leslie Knope in the 2012 elections.

Update, 6:12 p.m.: The body of the deceased individual has been transported from the scene after examination by the medical team. The deceased man’s name is Clark Carvelli, according to an individual who also lives in the woods adjacent to campus. Joseph Cunningham, who has been friends with Carvelli for years, said the deceased had heart and kidney problems and was a survivor of sexual abuse. Cunningham says that the US Park Police has ordered him to cease camping on the Park Service land between Canal Road and University property by tomorrow afternoon.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the deceased, his family and his friends,” University spokesperson Stacy Kerr said.

In an e-mail to the University community, Vice President for University Safety Rocco DelMonaco wrote:

U.S. Park Police and Metropolitan Police Department are currently on Park Service property, near the university off Canal Road. MPD is investigating a deceased male at that location. There does not appear to be any connection between the individual discovered on Park Service property and Georgetown University. Georgetown is cooperating with officials to provide access to the area, which is adjacent to university property. Thank you for your cooperation.

Update, 4:50 p.m.: A medical examination team is now on the scene. More information should be available shortly.

Update, 4:08 p.m.: The victim was male, and was found inside the tent around 2 p.m. According to a law enforcement source, there was no indication of foul play. The cause of death has not yet been determined, but it appears to be hypothermia. Two other people who were in the area of the woods, have been interviewed by police.

Update, 3:42 p.m.: According to University spokeswoman Stacy Kerr, earlier today a Georgetown University facilities worker saw a tent in the woods adjacent to University property near Canal Road. The worker informed DPS, and DPS in turn notified the U.S. Park Police, whose jurisdiction the area falls under.

Vox has yet to get official confirmation of a dead body, but the MPD officer responsible for investigating natural deaths is on the scene.

Original post, 3:23 p.m.: Georgetown Patch is reporting that a dead body has been found near Georgetown University. The body was found near the University’s Canal Road entrance, and police are currently working in the area. Carlos Martinez, an assignment editor for NBC Washington, tweeted that the body was found behind the Georgetown sign at the entrance. Vox is on the scene now, and we’ll have updates as they come.

Photo: Jackson Perry

Lauinger Library is about to get a bit roomier.

Changes to the University’s notoriously lax computer usage policy, which once led Washington City Paper to name Lauinger Library as one of D.C.’s best places to mooch internet access, will make it more difficult for guests to use the library’s computers.

“The impetus for the Library’s new computer policy is to ensure that our services and spaces are readily accessible to members of the Georgetown University Community,” Jessica Pierce, Executive Assistant to University Librarian Artemis Kirk, wrote in an email. “Lauinger Library is a heavily used building and we are constantly challenged to ensure that our resources are available to our primary users.”

Under the new policy, which takes effect on August 5, only 12 computers in the library will remain available to guests: ten on the third floor between the circulation and reference desks, one next to the printer on the second floor, and one across from the elevator on the fifth floor.

When the City Paper article was written last February, University guests had access to nearly every computer in the library, save for the ones meant for specialized tasks, such as editing or scanning.

Although the new policy seems to force out guests, it simultaneously “encourage[s] guests to bring their own laptops to Lauinger Library and take advantage of the free wireless network available throughout the building.”

Vox doesn’t know what’s worse: the way this policy tiptoes around the fact that many of the library’s “guests” are homeless people, or how it suggests that every inch of Lau has wireless internet access.