NEW YORK — Hillary Rodham Clinton and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio are joining forces for a cause dear to both: early childhood education.

De Blasio and Clinton helped launch a public service campaign Tuesday in Harlem. It encourages Hispanic families to read, sing and talk more to their young children.

It’s part of the “Too Small to Fail” effort sponsored by the Clinton Foundation and Next Generation, a San Francisco-based nonprofit. The Spanish-language Univision media company is a partner.

A quarter of all babies and toddlers in the U.S. are Hispanic. A recent study shows that they’re only half as likely to have parents read to them as white, non-Hispanic children.