Springfield Business Journal has hired Will Norris as creative director and digital media coordinator, effective Jan. 14. Norris had a long career at the State Journal-Register, most recently as creative director of Springfield’s Own Magazine until it ceased publication last year. He also teaches drawing classes for Springfield Art Association.

In addition, Rachel Otwell of Springfield has been hired as a new staff writer for Illinois Times, effective Feb. 3. For the past seven years she worked as a multimedia journalist for NPR Illinois, the public radio station. Otwell spent the last year engaged in investigative reporting of faculty sexual misconduct at University of Illinois-Urbana as part of a grant project through ProPublica.