Several of my friends and people I went to high school with (or their spouses) are teachers now. I live by the words "those who have the ability to help, have the responsibility to help." I may not be a teacher, but I can help those who are, especially those in underprivileged communities. That's why I'm a regular donor on DonorsChoose.org.
Projects I've supported on Donors Choose over the years have included many projects to build classroom libraries, air conditioning units for classrooms in schools that lack AC, basic school supplies such as paper and pencils, and a trip to a bookstore 70-80 miles away from a Native American reservation in South Dakota so that the elementary schoolers could experience what it is like to go to a bookstore and pick out a book of their own.
While you are shopping for school supplies this year or reveling in the fact that you no longer have to, consider supporting a classroom in one of the 50 states and DC.
