Your child might benefit from a little Counciling. Sometimes our own suffering can affect our children. I am assuming that you & your Mom had been close, and that your child was inolved with her as well? Has she expressed a concern over you?
I find that the school does not handle (or often recognise) the emotional needs of our children, even when we as involved parents point them out, until it causes them a great deal of difficulty. You can demand that your child sees the school councilor, or you can get an outside service.

When it comes to the school... unfortunatly it is not as easy as it should be to participate or make them do what we need. I have known a few families that took their child(ren) out of the system in order to get those needs met. Tell them you are concidering that option as a means to help your child because "they have not been providing adequate educational oppertunities" and see if they sing a different tune. I went to a meeting the other night where a parent had to do that to get the testing they felt was needed. According to the staff at the meeting, the Public School gets roughly $10,000/child & they do not want to lose those funds.

Good Luck!

PS I do not know the circumstances of your mother's Passing but these links might be helpful:
www.ameliacenter.org/
www.alfoundationforoncology.org/campnewsong.php