Second grade teacher Demetria Richardson spends so much on school supplies she has a designated credit card to cover classroom expenses. Although her district provides her with a $300 school supply stipend, a purchase as mundane as copy paper devours those funds instantly, she said. “That’s an increase from what teachers reported last year, which was $610.”Without DonorsChoose, Lyles said, teachers reported that they’d be spending over $1,400 of their own money on school supplies annually. That does add up.”Also adding up is the rising cost of school supplies. But DonorsChoose, Richardson said, is not a permanent solution to the long-standing pattern of teachers covering school supplies.