Should I contact my aspiring colleges in Freshman year?

Do not contact admissions to tell them you are interested. The tippy tops you aspire to don’t care. They don’t track interest.

You should do what interests you. Want to be president of the student council? Go for it. Want to knit doggy sweaters for shelter animals? Go for that too. But only do those things if you’re really interested in them. There’s no formula for getting into top colleges.