I was similarly disenchanted with the education system, and I've framed my purpose in life as doing something about it. I'm currently an undergraduate, too. But my solution to the disenchantment was to redefine purpose, to create a sub-objective, if you will. I gave myself a reason I was going to school. It's not the best reason (face-value credentials), but it's a good enough reason, and a valid one. Meanwhile, I spend most of my time attending free or cheap talks around campus; my student life as an academic is probably among the top 5 percent of the undergraduate population. I try to convince others to join me when possible.
The trick to giving a successful education to even students of small-town schools like your high school, I think, lies in the Internet. If we guarantee them access, and we make it possible for them to see the wide and various perspectives online, then we make it much, much easier for them to educate themselves despite their circumstances.
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