Ross police are searching Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on Thursday for missing Terra Linda High School teacher Debra Schmitt.

Schmitt, 53, was last seen Jan. 19 in Ross. She failed to report to work the next day when the words “thank you everyone” were found written on a blackboard in her classroom, police said.

Police searched trails in the Phoenix Lake area and in Ross itself Wednesday, Sgt. Gianfranco Campa said this morning.

The search by plainclothes officers and distribution of fliers in Golden Gate Park will be low-key, Campa said.

San Francisco police are assisting by suggesting locations police should search in the park and its environs, Campa said.

“We’ll comb homeless shelters and encampments and soup kitchens,” he said.

Schmitt had mentioned she might be intending to stay in San Francisco, possibly in the area of Golden Gate Park, police said.

Police are also following tips provided by the public, Campa said.

Police are aware some of Schmitt’s relatives in New Jersey have died within the past year and that Schmitt’s husband has filed for divorce, Campa said.

“We don’t consider that a reason why she left. There’s no reason to believe that,” Campa said regarding the divorce.

There have been other missing person’s cases in Ross but Schmitt’s disappearance has drawn “incredible attention and some things have been distorted,” Campa said.

Schmitt is a white woman who is 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 120 pounds, and has hazel eyes and brown hair.

Her Toyota, purse, personal identification and personal belongings were left at her home, police said.

She also may be in need of her prescribed medication, police said.

Anyone with information about Schmitt’s disappearance is asked to call Ross police at (415) 453-2727.