Rep. Glenn Thompson is pictured during a recent visit to Warren.

Glenn Thompson was first elected to the House of Representatives in the fall of 2008.

The life-long Centre County resident came to the House with 28 years of experience in health care as a therapist, rehabilitation services manager and a licensed nursing home administrator.

Halfway through his eighth term, Thompson has risen in the GOP ranks.

He’s currently the chair of the House Agriculture Committee where a main focus has been shepherding the Farm Bill towards the finish line. He’s the first Pennsylvanian in nearly 170 years to lead that committee.

Has the job been what he thought it would be?

“The dysfunction is not what I thought I would see,” Thompson told the Times Observer.

He said that’s a problem that both parties face and is “driven by the extremes.

“So that’s very disappointing and it’s alarming.”

But there’s one key way that the job has been what he thought it would be when he first sought election.

“The opportunity to make a difference,” he said. “You hope for that when you’re elected. I’ve been able to achieve that.”

He cited telemedicine expansion, especially for members of the military and veterans that has helped to reduce suicide, as well as efforts in the career and technical education space.

“One of the things I find really satisfying,” he said, is visiting career centers. “When they graduate, they graduate with a diploma and certificates of skill” in one hand and “multiple job offers” in the other.

“To be able to see that, that’s what I was hoping for.”

Thompson explained that some members seek election to Congress as specialists in a given area and do it really well.

Rather than the specific focus, he said he strives to listen.

“What I do is reflective of the needs of my constituents and the needs of the American people,” he said. “I don’t want to be a specialist. I want to be able to handle whatever gets identified.”

Thompson said his work can be described as “Republican led and conservative leaning.”

“That’s how I approached the Farm Bill,” he said. “That’s what I do.”