The student loan program as we have known it comes to an end June 30. It will be replaced with a new program that has extremely high rates and it will negatively affect people taking out loans this fall. For those who have been in college or are about to finish college, you can avoid the high rates. All you need to do is what’s called an “in-school consolidation.” To do that you must give up your six month grace period and lock in RIGHT NOW. Don’t wait until June 30 because everyone will be trying to do it around that time. Again, this is the last time you’ll be able to lock in at a decent rate. The new rates are going to be much higher. For parents taking out loans, the rate will be 8.5 percent. For students, it will be 6.8 percent. But if you lock in right now, your rate will be between 4 and 6 percent. Normally, students don’t think about doing anything for six months after they graduate because of the grace period, but you need to act now. For more information go to, loanconsolidation.ed.gov. And, Get Clark's latest update.