Fresno County schools superintendent candidate retired after investigation into campaign
While Johnny Alvarado was running for the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools, he was being investigated by Parlier Unified over allegations he used district resources for his campaign, The Bee has learned.
According to documents obtained via a public records request, the district placed Alvarado on paid administrative leave on Feb. 6, pending an investigation into the allegations.
Less than two weeks later, Alvarado — an assistant superintendent — submitted a notice of separation, noting that his last paid working day would be March 31. He officially left due to retirement, which began on April 1.
Alvarado did not respond to a text message from The Bee requesting a comment for this story.
The investigation report was submitted on April 7 and concluded it was “more likely than not” that some district staff felt pressured to sign a petition to support Alvarado’s campaign.
Specifically, the investigation says some employees felt pressured to support Alvarado’s campaign because he was assistant superintendent at the time. The report says Alvarado also admitted to approaching some staff members during work hours, which he said “may have been a mistake,” per the document.
The investigation also found that Alvarado had “more likely than not” used district resources, equipment and time to support his campaign.
In the document, the investigator referred to a response from Alvarado in which he said he didn’t recall using district resources.
“Dr. Alvarado realizes that he may have made some mistakes. It was never his intention to violate District policy while running his campaign. He was clear that any work for his campaign by District staff must be completed outside of District work hours,” the report reads. “This is Dr. Alvarado’s first political campaign, and he did not receive any sort of orientation or guidelines on how to navigate the campaign while working for the District.”
On April 2, a day after his retirement and less than a week before the investigation concluded, Alvarado spoke at a community forum alongside his fellow candidates that was hosted by The Maddy Institute, a non-partisan organization focused on public policy issues.
Per the paperwork, Alvarado had to refrain from discussing the investigation on social media or with district employees and families. He also wasn’t allowed to visit any Parlier Unified sites or events during the investigation.
In early May, the district sent a letter to the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to note that Alvarado had “demonstrated a breach of professional conduct” and violated district policy. The district said Alvarado resigned in lieu of discipline.
“Prior to the conclusion of the District’s investigation, and prior to any potential issuance of discipline, Dr. Alvarado resigned and retired from the District effective March 31, 2026,” Parlier Unified HR Director Fred Guerrero wrote in a correspondence to the commission.
Alvarado ran against Eimear O’Brien and incumbent Michele Cantwell-Copher in the primary County Superintendent of Schools race. Alvarado garnered 42,610 votes, or 27% of cast votes, as of Thursday afternoon but failed to advance to the general election in November.
