At a Dutch university of applied sciences, 406 lecturers responded to a questionnaire about their interest in getting involved in and supporting a new honors program. The findings were analyzed according to the Excellence Acceptance Model and the Organizational Influence Model. The lecturers' attitudes, but not their self-efficacy, affected their behaviors toward excellence. The executive manager's leadership style, especially visionary leadership, and the perceived discussion culture on excellence, influenced the lecturers' behaviors toward excellence. These results suggested the importance of leadership style on lecturers' willingness to embrace educational change. (58 ref)-