Internet2’s Adair Thaxton Elected to NANOG Board of Directors

Adair Thaxton, senior cyberinfrastructure security engineer at Internet2, was recently elected to the North American Network Operators’ Group (NANOG) Board of Directors. She will serve a three-year term starting Jan. 1, 2027.

NANOG is a community-driven organization focused on the ongoing advancement of an open, secure, and robust internet. Through meetings and other forums, NANOG brings network professionals together to share the latest internet technologies and industry best practices, discuss challenges, and address the evolving demands of a global network.

Thaxton’s career in the research and education (R&E) community has spanned more than 20 years. Before joining Internet2, she spent 13 years as a network engineer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she also earned her master’s degree in information science. She is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional.

As part of the Internet2 Network Services security team, Thaxton safeguards the Internet2 network and supports members in adopting routing security best practices, including RPKI Route Origin Authorizations. Her work helps protect R&E networks from common routing threats and supports a safer internet for all.

She has been active in the NANOG community since 2020, attending meetings, participating in online forums, and presenting on security topics. She has served on the NANOG Program Committee for nearly four years, including three years as chair and vice-chair, where she led the agenda for the organization’s annual events. Her involvement in the wider network operator community also includes the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), where she was a fellow at ARIN 53.

As a member of the NANOG Board, Thaxton will bring an R&E perspective to how the network operator community advances operational practices and collaborates to solve new challenges. Her service continues Internet2’s long-standing role in shaping the global network ecosystem that R&E organizations depend on.

ICYMI

• R&E Topology Report Gives Network Operators New Visibility Into How Traffic Reaches Internet2
• Advanced Networking in the Quantum Era: Demo Achieves Post-Quantum Cryptography on the Internet2 National Backbone
• From Hyperscale to Intelligent: A Midyear Update on Building the Future of R&E Networking Together