French competed in the Miss Teen USA and Miss America pageants. She won the Miss Arkansas Teen USA 2004 title in a state pageant held in late 2003. It was her first attempt at the title. She went on to represent Arkansas in the Miss Teen USA 2004 pageant held in Palm Springs, California, in August 2004. French did not place in the nationally televised pageant, which was won by Shelley Hennig of Louisiana, but she did win the Miss Photogenic award. This award, chosen by a public internet vote, is given to the delegate who most “exemplifies beauty through the lens of a camera”.

French, a 2004 graduate of Lakeside High School in Arkansas, later moved to Columbia, Missouri, to study Broadcast Journalism at the University of Missouri. While there she won the Miss Mid-Missouri title and competed for the Miss Missouri 2006 title, which she won. French is one of only a few Miss Teen USA delegates to win a Miss America state title, which is even more rare than the fact that she has held titles in different states.

French competed in the Miss America 2007 pageant broadcast live on CMT from the Theatre for the Performing Arts on January 29, 2007, and won the Miss America 2007 Smile Award. Her platform was “Health and Fitness for Life”. “I chose my platform because diabetes runs on both sides of my family.” She has also volunteered with the Special Olympics and has written articles for Life & Home Magazine, where she established a monthly health and fitness column.

In 2010, French was awarded the Excellence in Local Television Award by the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association for an hour-long special called “Gay in America: Tensions & Tolerance.” The special focused on several teens who killed themselves after being bullied.