A recent article in the New York Times beautifully illustrated why so many people are turning to online schools during these difficult economic times. Simply put, online schools provide individuals with an opportunity to enjoy a fresh start within a career path that may provide them with a greater amount of job security and possibly a higher income than they were receiving before the recession struck.

The article focuses on Raymond Vaughn, who is an unemployed 40-something man from South Carolina who was laid off from his laborer position several months ago. Despite having applied for numerous jobs – more than 50 according to Vaughn – he has been unable to land a new job. Instead, he has had to depend upon unemployment benefits as well as the generosity of his girlfriend, who has been supporting them both with her job as a secretary at a nearby hospital.

“She could cover this place on her own,” Vaughn said in the New York Times article. “She could kick my butt out and she’d be fine. It bothers me. That’d be hard for any man.”

Unfortunately, Vaughn’s story isn’t exactly unusual these days. Currently, unemployment rates are higher than they have been for the past 25 years and they are only expected to get worse. In fact, many economists predict that about 650,000 jobs were lost in the last month along, which brings the total job loss since December of 2007 to about 5 million. Employment opportunities for African-American men without a college degree, such as Vaughn, are even worse. On the national level, less than 60% of African-American men who were 20-years-old or older held jobs in February. This figure is the lowest it has been since 1972, which is when the government began keeping track of this data.

Luckily for Vaughn, he has found an educational opportunity that he and his fiancée have determined they can afford. By paying just $69 per month, Vaughn is able to participate in a program through the U.S. Career Institute out of Colorado, which will train him for a career in medical billing. Despite the fact that he doesn’t know anyone who has participated in the program, Vaughn feels confident that he is on a good path toward getting started in a solid career.

“…I called and checked it out,” Vaughn said in his New York Times interview. “Basically, they said their school is accredited. Their school has weight. It’s not like the school is frowned upon.”

Hopefully for Vaughn and others like him who have suddenly found themselves without a job and in a difficult financial situation, the current state of the economy will serve as more of an opportunity than a set-back as new career paths become a reality with the help of online schools.