Dr. Randles serves as a public health researcher and educator at the Dwyer School of Health Sciences, Indiana University South Bend. He teaches epidemiology and biostatistics, and nutrition, and leads applied research initiatives aimed at improving health and educational outcomes in underserved communities.
His current research focuses on a multi-year cross-sectional surveillance study examining dietary behaviors, nutritional access, and health outcomes among small college student-athletes, a population that remains significantly underrepresented in sports nutrition and food security research. As Principal Investigator, he is developing a scalable model to generate reliable data from small and mid-sized athletic programs. The findings are intended to inform equitable health policy across rural, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), and community college contexts.
In addition, he leads a campus food policy research initiative that examines the impact of interventions such as food pantries, emergency meal vouchers, and athletic fueling stations on food access, health, and academic retention across Indiana University system campuses. He also directs the Bridging Literacy Project, a community-engaged reading support partnership between IU South Bend and local middle schools.
His earlier research addressed neighborhood food environments and socioeconomic status, including studies on healthy eating promotions in restaurants and food selection in retail food stores. This work has been published in journals such as The Sport Journal and the International Journal of Health and Nutrition.
He is also active in curriculum development, having designed or redeveloped programs in outdoor education, coaching, physical education, and a study-abroad course on nutrition and health in Costa Rica's Nicoya Blue Zone.