Rick,
Thanks for the quick response. In the anticipated application, it's typical to have a 3 cell LiPo battery, so 11-12vdc is available. The BLDC motor I'm currently using as a prototype is about 1" dia. and with the gearcase is about 3" long, so a 1"x3" PCB wouldn't be too large (but smaller is desirable -- I'm used to designing and building wearable wireless devices somewhat smaller than that :-)
Since this is for an educational application, cost is always a consideration. For reference, the motor I'm now using is $5 (from China). The ultimate goal is to release it to the community as an open-source design.
Mike