Edison Middle School opened in 1955 and was named after the inventor, Thomas Edison. Edison school was one of few schools to participate in MPATI educational television lessons during the 1950s. This was in response to the feared superiority of the Soviet Educational system. In order to broadcast lessons across the Midwest, MPATI equipped two DC-6 planes with transmission equipment. In 2004, David Tidmarsh was a student at Edison when he won the 77th Annual National Spelling Bee by correctly spelling autochthonous.