The current study explored the perceptions of charter school principals about the charter principal role, the support needed by charter principals, and the preparation of charter school principals. Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews using the Nvivo 12 software suite was used to analyze participant responses and reveal themes for the charter school principal role, support needed by charter school principals, strengths and weaknesses of charter principal preparation and components of a preparation program for charter school principals. Role themes included safety and security, aligning vision, instructional leadership, and building capacity. Support themes included collaboration, the importance of a direct supervisor, trust from district leadership, and support from other departments in the school system. Strengths of preparation themes included internships and student discipline. Weaknesses of preparation experience themes included budget, campus operations, resolving consequences of staff turnover, poor experiences as an assistant principal, instructional leadership, and understanding the impact of being a principal on their personal lives. Components of a preparation program themes included problem-based and scenario-based learning, internships, campus operations, collaboration, instructional leadership, mentoring and coaching, content aligned with professional standards, organized into a cohort, and budget training. Information from the current study provides information for charter school system leadership to consider when developing a principal preparation program for principals.