It seems like you still want to work in the same field, and are mainly considering school because of the credential it offers. While that addresses one reason

It seems like you still want to work in the same field, and are mainly considering school because of the credential it offers. While that addresses one reason employers might be throwing away your resume, it isn't on its own enough to make you stand out. The most effective way to stand out is through a personal connection. So instead of going to school, maybe you should try to meet a lot of interesting, smart people who are working on cool stuff. Work with them on side projects and stay in touch with people at companies that are expanding. This isn't hard for programmers to do: just go to programming language user groups, try things out at home, and get involved in some mailing lists. Hang out at local coworking spaces and BarCamps. It will probably take a few months of this before you get a good job offer. It will feel much scarier than school because there is not a well-defined end goal. But if you have an active geek social circle you will hear about job opportunities well before they get to the point of screening resumes for education credentials.