sentences:  In its first year, the program enrolled over 500 students from 17 countries, with over 30 companies sponsoring employees.In 1998, the program received the Program Excellence Award, from the Association of Canadian Community Colleges, a consortium of 155 Colleges.It was the first time a distance education program had earned this award and was noted by ACCC President, Gerald Brown, as a “landmark achievement in the field of distance education”.