Yes, community colleges are eligible to apply for Department designation to become an Exchange Visitor Program sponsor. Details on applying for designation are available here: https://j1visa.state.gov/sponsors/become-a-sponsor/. Regardless of the sponsor type, the J-1 categories eligible for the STEM Research Initiative include College and University Student (Student Intern and Academic Training), Intern, Trainee, Specialist, Short term Scholar, Professor or Research Scholar.