OneNet’s 30th Anniversary: 30 Years of Connecting Oklahoma

In 2026, OneNet proudly marks a monumental milestone—30 years as Oklahoma’s trusted research and education network. For three decades, OneNet has been at the heart of progress, fueling innovation in research, education, health care, and government services across the state.

From bustling K-12 classrooms to cutting-edge career technology centers, and from vibrant colleges to world-class universities, OneNet has been a steadfast partner in empowering education throughout Oklahoma. Our drive to expand research connectivity has earned OneNet a place among the nation’s leading research and education networks.

But our impact goes far beyond education. OneNet delivers high-speed connectivity to libraries, research institutions, healthcare providers, and government agencies at every level—local, state, federal, and tribal. Through our subscribers, OneNet forges powerful connections for Oklahomans, linking communities to global research, digital learning, and virtual health care.

Visionary Beginnings

The journey began in the early 1990s, when Oklahoma’s state legislature imagined a unified network harnessing both public and private infrastructure. This bold vision led to a public-private partnership and the development of OneNet. In 1992, voters approved $14 million from a statewide capital bond, setting the stage for OneNet’s launch as a division of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. By 1996, the network was fully operational, with OSRHE providing ongoing leadership and campuses statewide hosting OneNet’s infrastructure.

Discover more milestones in OneNet’s historical timeline!

Infrastructure Growth

OneNet’s original hub-and-spoke design—with hubs in Oklahoma City and Tulsa—supported 45Mbps bandwidth. Fast-forward 30 years, and OneNet now powers Oklahoma’s most critical organizations with core bandwidths from 100Gbps to 400Gbps. In 2025, we completed a major upgrade, boosting our network capacity and connecting to the Great Plains Network at 400G. This vital link propels Oklahoma’s research and education traffic to Internet2’s 400G network and out to the world.

With upstream connectivity nearing 1Tbps through GPN, Internet2 and other partners, OneNet is ready to meet the ever-growing needs of our subscribers. We’ve replaced equipment at hub sites statewide, moving from 10G to infrastructure supporting 100G–400G, paving the way for future upgrades to 800G and even 1.6T as technology advances. These enhancements mean more traffic, faster speeds, and solid reliability—ensuring OneNet is prepared for tomorrow’s data-driven computing.

Looking Ahead: The Next Chapter

As we celebrate 30 years of service, the OneNet team honors the vital work our subscribers provide to their communities.  Our subscribers serve students, patients, researchers and community members. The connectivity we provide is essential to their success, and we remain committed to empowering our subscribers to achieve their missions. The future is bright, and OneNet stands ready to connect Oklahoma to new opportunities for decades to come.

This project may include content that was generated in part with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) tools.