David W. Borst Sr.; Co-Founded Intercollegiate Broadcast System

David W. Borst Sr., who co-founded the first student-run radio station at Brown University and later the Intercollegiate Broadcast System, has died.

Borst died Dec. 1 of injuries suffered in an automobile accident in Palos Verdes. He was 82.

The son of social workers, Borst was born in Florida but lived in New Orleans, Minneapolis, and Indianapolis as a child before finally settling in Yonkers and then Bronxville, N.Y. A ham radio enthusiast as a youth, Borst began tinkering with radios during his high school days at Bronxville. He received a scholarship to Brown University, where he graduated in 1940 with a degree in electrical engineering.

While at Brown, Borst co-founded the Brown Network with fellow student George Abraham. At first, the system worked on wires connected to radio receivers in individual dorm rooms. For longer broadcasts, it ran under Borst’s ham radio call letters, but it soon evolved into the first AM radio station on a college campus. The friends went on to form Intercollegiate Broadcasting System in February 1940.

At its first meeting, Borst distributed copies of an engineering booklet he had written himself to students from 13 other colleges, including Holy Cross, Columbia and Cornell. From that meeting the concept of a college radio network was born.

IBS, which now has more than 800 members at colleges and universities across America, facilitated its own growth by acting as a single body to represent college stations before national advertisers and the Federal Communications Commission.

After college, Borst found work with General Electric in the department that handled heavy rectifying equipment. During World War II, he coordinated and developed improvements to the TBX system, a floating two-way radio for the Marine Corps. He left General Electric in 1961 to join International Rectifier in El Segundo.

Borst remained active in IBS for the rest of his life, serving as president, chairman of the board and chairman of the West Coast division.

He is survived by his wife Lorrain; sisters Jana Owens and Jeri Haagans; son Dave Borst Jr.; daughters Linda Noble and Ruth Punt; eight grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

A memorial service for Borst will be held at 1 p.m. Dec. 22 at Palos Verdes Neighborhood Church, 415 Paseo del Mar, Palos Verdes Estates.

Donations may be made in his name to the music Memorial Fund at the Neighborhood Church.