diff --git a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/html/edit.coffee b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/html/edit.coffee
index 2902f4d1c9..dfb197e204 100644
--- a/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/html/edit.coffee
+++ b/common/lib/xmodule/xmodule/js/src/html/edit.coffee
@@ -12,6 +12,9 @@ class @HTMLEditingDescriptor
 
     $(@advanced_editor.getWrapperElement()).addClass(HTMLEditingDescriptor.isInactiveClass)
 
+#   This is a workaround for the fact that tinyMCE's baseURL property is not getting correctly set on AWS
+#   instances (like sandbox). It is not necessary to explicitly set baseURL when running locally.
+    tinyMCE.baseURL = '/static/js/vendor/tiny_mce'
     @tiny_mce_textarea = $(".tiny-mce", @element).tinymce({
       script_url : '/static/js/vendor/tiny_mce/tiny_mce.js',
       theme : "advanced",