ORANGE : Trustee Sets Up Private Christian School

Trustee Max Reissmueller, who has advocated privatizing schools in the Orange Unified School District, has made the issue a family affair.

Reissmueller and his wife, Angela, filed an affidavit with the county Department of Education Oct. 10 stating that they have established a school called Orange Christian Academy. The form lists Reissmueller as principal, his wife as teacher, and one first-grader as the student body. The address of the school is the same as that given for the Reissmuellers’ home.

The couple described the academy as a coeducational day school that is religion-based but not affiliated with a church. The school offers a high school diploma program and does not claim tax-exempt status.

Reissmueller refused to comment, stating only that “my children are not a public issue.”

The trustee, a 26-year-old electronics manager, won his seat on the school board last November after running on an “anti-tax” platform that earned him endorsements from Rep. Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove) and Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange).

District officials would not confirm or deny that the Reissmuellers took their child out of public school.

At the Oct. 13 school board meeting, Reissmueller indicated that he would support privatizing some district services.

“Due to my experience with public and private firms, I would take private any day,” Reissmueller said at the meeting.