Ken French begins his fifth season with the University of Rio Grande men's basketball program. Prior to becoming the head coach of the RedStorm, French spent six seasons as the program's lead assistant coach.

           French is a native of Huntington, WV and is a 1993 graduate of West Virginia State College. He began his coaching career at the high school level, spending four seasons as an assistant coach at Huntington St. Joseph High School before a two-year stint as an assistant at Ceredo-Kenova High School.

           French's collegiate coaching career began as an assistant at Tusculum (TN) College, where he spent three seasons before coming to Rio Grande in 1999. Upon his arrival at Rio, he helped guide the men's program to a pair of appearances in the NAIA Division II National Tournament, including a Final Four berth in 2001.

           Under French's direction, the program's summer camps - the Little RedStorm Day Camp and Individual "Hard Work" Camp - have seen the number of participants grow to record levels. He has also been an important part of the development of the Rio Fall Basketball Academy.

           French also serves as the school's athletic recruiting coordinator and will lead the NAIA Champions of Character Initiative for the entire athletic program for the 11th year. He was certified by the NAIA as a "Champions of Character" instructor in October 2005.

           The program has also seen a 100 percent graduation rate of its seniors during French's tenure as head coach.

           French resides in Rio Grande with his wife, Tonya, and their two children, son Tre and daughter Ali.